u 


310    53D 


e  SIXTH 

•  CORPS 
6EN. 


v»\i    V     -' 


Cl.NKRAL    JOHN    SK1HJWICK 


FOLLOWING  THE  GREEK  CROSS 

OR,    MEMORIES    OF    THE 

SIXTH  ARMY  CORPS 


BY 


THOMAS  W.  HYDE 

BREVET   BRIGADIER-GENERAL  OF  VOLUNTEERS 


WITH  NUMEROUS  PORTRAITS 


BOSTON    AND    NEW    YORK 
HOUGHTON,  MIFFLIN   AND  COMPANY 


E-H3.; 
.9 


HI 


Copyright,  1894, 
BY  THOMAS  W.  HYDE. 

All  rights  reserved. 


The  Riverside.  Press,  Cambridge,  Mass.,  U.  S.  A. 
Electrotyped  and  Printed  by  H.  O.  Houghton  &  Co. 


To 
A.  H. 


M143991 


PREFACE. 

As  a  preface  should  properly  be  the  last 
thing  written,  after  reading  this  book  again  it 
seems  to  me  that  this  preface  should  be  an 
apology  for  personality.  And  yet  I  should  like 
to  read  a  book  written  in  the  same  vein  by  some 
officer  of  the  Revolutionary  army.  The  per 
sonal  narratives,  scant  as  they  are,  of  the 
Napoleonic  campaigns  are  of  rare  interest:  so 
perhaps  some  day  my  apology  may  be  received, 
and  I  be  wholly  pardoned  for  putting  upon  the 
public  what  was  originally  intended  for  my 
children  and  neighbors.  We  old  soldiers  have 
flooded  the  country  with  our  kind  of  literature, 
and  we  have  been  reasonably  ready  at  all  times 
to  explain  about  the  war ;  but  it  is  not  for  long 
before  our  voices  will  be  silent,  our  pens  as 
rusty  as  our  swords,  and  our  pensions  cancelled. 
Bear  with  us  but  a  little  longer,  O  gracious 
Public. 

THOMAS  W.  HYDE. 

BATH,  MAINE,  July,  1894. 


CONTENTS. 


CHAPTER  I. 

Signs  of  the  Coming  Conflict.  —  Chicago  in  1860.  —  Abra 
ham  Lincoln,  President  Elect.  —  The  Seventy-five 
Thousand  Call 1 

CHAPTER  II. 

Bull  Run.  —  Recruiting  for  the  7th  Maine.  —  In  Camp  at 

Augusta.  —  Election  of  Officers.  —  Start  for  the  Front     1 1 

CHAPTER  III. 

Lunch  in  Faneuil  Hall.  —  War  Rumors.  —  Hostile  Balti 
more. —  John  Barleycorn  our  Worst  Enemy.  —  The 
Romance  of  War 19 

CHAPTER   IV. 

A  Rebel  Spy.  —  Camp  Fare.  —  First  Visit  to  Washington. 
Death  of  Colonel  Marshall.  —  Kalorama  Hill.  —  Cross 
ing  into  Virginia 24 

CHAPTER  V. 

Camp    Griffin.  —  Opossum   Soup.  —  Irish   Volunteers.  — 

First  Independent  Command 30 


vi  CONTENTS. 

CHAPTER  VI. 

The  Grand  Review.  —  Start  for  the  Peninsula.  —  Advance 
on  Yorktown.  —  A  Night  Alarm.  —  Under  Fire  First 
Time 35 

CHAPTER   VII. 

Hard  Tack,  Mud,  and  Rain.  —  Building  Corduroy  Roads. 
—  A  Picket  Fight.  —  Old  Generals  and  Young  Vol 
unteers.  —  Estimate  of  McClellan 43 

CHAPTER   VIII. 

Buried    Torpedoes.  —  The    Battle    of   Williamsburg. — 

Hancock's  Bayonet  Charge.  —  McClellan's  Speech    .     48 

CHAPTER  IX. 

An  Episode  in  the  Enemy's  Country.  —  Old  Madeira.  — 
The  White  House.  —  Skirmish  at  Mechanicsville.  — 
No  McDowell 54 

CHAPTER   X. 

A  Grim  Rebel.  —  Custer's  First  Skirmish.  —  Fair  Oaks.  — 

In  the  Hospital. — Malaria 60 

CHAPTER  XI. 

Lee    strikes  our   Right.  —  Gaines's  Mill.  —  Holding  our 

own.  —  Fight  at  Garnett's  Hill.  —  An  Anxious  Night    66 

CHAPTER  XII. 

Savage  Station.  —  White  Oak  Swamp.  —  Rout  of  the  Ger 
mans.  —  Vermonters  mark  Time  to  the  Shell  Fire  .  71 

CHAPTER  XIII. 

Malvern    Hill.  —  Stealing    the    General's    Dinner.  —  To 

Harrison's  Landing 76 


CONTENTS.  vii 

CHAPTER  XIV. 

Fitz-Jolm  Porter.  —  A  Mule  disappears  in  Mud.  —  Home 
again.  —  Second  Bull  Run.  —  Death  of  Sam  Fessen- 
den 81 

CHAPTER  XV. 

Chantilly.  —  Glorious  Deaths  of  Kearny  and  Stevens.  — 
Falstaff's  Army.  —The  Gallant  Swede.  —  My  Mary 
land  87 

CHAPTER  XVI. 

Crampton's  Gap.  —  Picket  on  the  Mountain.  —  First 
Charge  at  Antietam.  —  The  Germans  redeemed.  — 
Fine  Snapshooting 92 

CHAPTER  XVII. 

Charging  an  Army.  —  Reaching  the  Farthest  Point  in  the 
Enemy's  Lines.  —  Vain  Heroism.  —  "  Rally,  Boys,  to 
save  the  Major  !  "  —  Applause  from  the  Vermonters. 
—  Rebel  Reports 99 

CHAPTER  XVIII. 

Under  Arrest.  —  Welcomed  to  Maine  again.  —  A  Winter 

at  Home.  — Miss  the  Battle  of  Fredericksburg     .     .   108 

CHAPTER  XIX. 

Back    in    the    Field.  —  General     Franklin.  —  "  Baldy  " 

Smith.  —  In  Clover  at  last. — General  Sedgwick   .     .  115 

CHAPTER  XX. 

Reorganizing  the  Army.  —  A  Military  Pageant.  —  Getting 
ready  for  the  Assault.  —  A  Southern  Marksman.  — 
A  Government  Contract  . 120 


viii  CONTENTS. 

CHAPTER  XXI. 

Storming  Marye's  Heights.  —  Salem  Church.  —  An  111- 
Boding  Night.  —  Lee  attacks  with  Three  to  One,  and 
is  beaten  off.  —  Over  the  River  again.  —  A  Movable 
Bed 127 

CHAPTER   XXII. 

Fame  of  the  Sixth  Corps  as  bright  as  ever.  —  Guarding 
Southern  Homes.  —  Whitworth  Bolts.  —  Hooker  re 
lieved  135 

CHAPTER  XXIII. 

To  Taneytown  for  Orders.  —  Council  of  War  in  Meade's 
Tent.  —  Seventy-Mile  Ride.  —  The  Corps  up  the  Bal 
timore  Pike 141 

CHAPTER  XXIV. 

Longstreet's  Magnificent  Attack.  —  The  Corps  directed 
toward  the  Heavy  Firing.  —  Up  Little  Round  Top.  — 
Gloomy  Rumors 146 

CHAPTER  XXV. 

Farns worth's  Charge.  —  Two  Hundred  and  Ten  Cannon 
dealing  Death.  —  Pickett's  Charge.  —  A  Carnival 
of  Death.  —  Sabre  Flashes  in  the  Dust  Clouds  .  .  -151 

CHAPTER  XXVI. 

The  Morning  after  Gettysburg.  —  Our  Capua.  —  Mount 
Misery.  —  The  Funkstown  Traitress.  —  The  General's 
Forbearance 158 

CHAPTER  XXVII. 

Across  the  Potomac.  —  Rebel  Maidens  of  Warrenton.  — 
After  Mosby.  —  A  Loving-Cup  with  "  Jeb  "  Stuart. 
—  A  Brilliant  Feat  at  R.ippahannock  Station  .  .  .  164 


CONTENTS.  IX 

CHAPTER  XXVIII. 

A  Virginia  Mansion  of  the  Olden  Time.  —  A  British  Con 
tingent.  —  Locust  Grove.  —  Mine  Run.  —  Back  to 
Camp,  cold  and  disgusted 172 

CHAPTER  XXIX. 

Our  Winter  City.  —  Ball  Rooms  of  the  Camp.  —  Roman 
tic  Ride  across  Hazel  Run.  —  Enter  Grant  and  Sheri 
dan.  —  Torbert's  Horse  ....  ....  178 

CHAPTER  XXX. 

Over  the  Rapidan.  —  Orders  for  Meade.  — Alternate  Vic 
tory  and  Success  in  the  Wilderness. — Scouting  round 
the  Enemy.  —  A  Good  Samaritan 182 

CHAPTER   XXXI. 

Down  the  Road  to  Spottsylvania.  —  Destructive  Sharp- 
shooting. —  Sedgwick's  Death. — In  Memoriam  .  .  191 

CHAPTER   XXXII. 

Upton's  Assault.  —  Hancock's  Assault.  —  The  Bloodiest 

Fight  of  the  War  .     .  ...  196 

CHAPTER  XXXIII. 

A  Woodland  Fortress.  —  "  How  long,  O  Lord,  how  long  !  " 
—  A  Cure  for  the  Goitre.  —  The  Battle  of  Massapo- 
nax  Church.  —  General  Mackenzie.  —  Dr.  Fiske  .  .  203 

CHAPTER  XXXIV. 

Carbine  Fire.  —  In  the  Lines  at  Cold  Harbor.  —  Photo 
graphed  in  Action.  — Useless  Assaults.  — A  Flag  of 
Truce  at  Midnight 208 

CHAPTER   XXXV. 
Naval  Hospitalities.  —  Mr.  Lincoln.  —  Mahone  flanks  us  .  214 


X  CONTENTS. 

CHAPTER  XXXVI. 

Back  to  Washington.  —  Early  on  the  War  Path.  —  The 
President  under  Fire.  —  Ragged  and  Footsore  Vet 
erans  meet.  —  Honors  divided,  but  Washington  saved  221 

CHAPTER  XXXVII. 

Return  to  the  Regiment.  —  The  Snow  Bivouac.  —  Sheri 
dan  takes  Command.  —  Narrow  Escapes.  —  Muster 
out  of  the  7th  Maine 225 

CHAPTER  XXXVIII. 

The  First  Maine  Veterans.  —  Lose  Sheridan's  Ride.  — 
Perils  of  the  Valley.  —  A  Brigade  by  Inversion.  — 
A  Land  of  Milk  and  Honey 233 

CHAPTER  XXXIX. 

Box  Cars  with  Fireplaces.  —  Our  Dutch  Gap  Canal.  — 

A  Star  Chamber.  —  Picket  Attacks -238 

CHAPTER  XL. 

Gordon's  Attack  at  Hare's  Hill. — We  attack  in  our  Front. 
—  Under  the  Fire  of  Thirty  Cannon.  —  Our  Vandal- 


243 


CHAPTER  XLI. 


The  Wedge  Assault.  —  A  Camp  Fire  guides  to  Victory.  — 
The  Lines  pierced.  —  Death  of  A.  P.  Hill.  —  Veter 
ans  take  Colors,  while  Substitutes  run 249 

CHAPTER  XLII. 

Attack  on  Lee's  Headquarters.  —  General  Lee  heads  our 
Opponents.  —  Taking  a  Battery.  —  The  Spires  of 
Petersburg.  —  Penrose  wounded 256 


CONTENTS.  xi 

CHAPTER  XLIII. 

Moses  Owen.  —  Pushing  on  after  Lee.  —  Under  Sheridan's 
Eye  at  Sailor's  Creek.  —  The  Surrender  at  last.  — 
Wild  Rejoicing.  —  Refused  a  Sight  of  the  Rebel 
Army 261 

CHAPTER  XLIV. 

Lincoln's     Assassination.  —  Occupy     Danville.  —  Army 

Journalism.  —  The   Grand  Review.  —  Home  at  last  266 


LIST  OF  ILLUSTRATIONS. 


PAGE 

MAJOR-GENERAL  JOHN  SEDGWICK  .       Frontispiece 

LlEUTENANT-COLONEL   T.  W.  HYDE        ...  14 

MAJOR-GENERAL  WILLIAM  F.  SMITH  .  .  .78 
COLONEL  E.  VON  VEGESACK  ....  90 
GENERAL  GEORGE  B.  MCCLELLAN  .  .  .  .110 
GENERAL  WILLIAM  B.  FRANKLIN  .  .  .116 
CAPTAIN  H.  W.  FARRAR,  A.  D.  C.  .  .  .  130 

GENERAL  GEORGE  G.  MEADE  ....  142 
BRIGADIER-GENERAL  DAVID  A.  RUSSELL  .  .  168 
LIEUTENANT-COLONEL  M.  T.  McMAHON  .  .  192 
SIXTH  CORPS  HEADQUARTERS  AT  COLD  HARBOR  .  210 
MAJOR  C.  A.  WHITTIER,  A.  D.  C.  .  .  .  234 

AT  THE  WELFORD  HOUSE 240 

GENERAL  PHILIP  H.  SHERIDAN    .  .        .      262 


FOLLOWING  THE  GREEK  CROSS. 


CHAPTER  I. 

"  Our  chief  of  men,  who  through  a  cloud, 
Not  of  war  only,  but  detractions  rude, 
Guided  by  faith  and  matchless  fortitude." 

MILTON. 

WHETHER  it  is  worth  while  to  preserve  the 
personal  recollections  of  those  who  lived  and 
acted  during  the  stirring  days  of  1860  to  1865, 
however  humble  may  have  been  their  position, 
is  a  question  difficult  for  me  to  consider  in  an 
unbiased  frame  of  mind.  When  we  remember 
the  large  part  of  the  population  of  the  United 
States  who  have  been  born  and  have  entered 
into  active  life  since  then,  as  well  as  the  great 
numbers  of  our  youth  growing  into  manhood,  it 
may,  perhaps,  seem  probable  that  they  might 
feel  an  interest  in  what  an  older  generation  then 
thought  and  did  while  the  country  was  in  the 
throes  of  the  most  gigantic  war  of  modern  times. 
Such  an  interest  is  best  aroused  by  personal 
narration,  however  difficult  it  is  to  one  who 
would  prefer  to  be  impersonal.  A  history  of 
those  times,  now  hardly  to  be  called  recent,  is 


12  FOLZGtflNG   THE   GREEK  CROSS. 

yet  to  be  written,  and  when  it  is  written  it  will 
stand,  like  the  line  of  battle,  behind  personal 
narratives,  the  skirmishers  which  precede  it. 

In  the  fall  of  1860,  many  signs  and  omens  of 
a  coming  dissolution  of  the  Union  were  visible, 
but  boys  of  eighteen  and  nineteen  were  not 
much  impressed  by  them. 

Having  been  invited  at  that  time  by  the 
Hon.  J.  Young  Scammon,  of  Chicago,  to  make 
a  part  of  the  first  senior  class  of  the  University 
of  Chicago,  a  new  institution  in  which  he  was 
deeply  interested,  I  left  Bowdoin  College  to 
spend  a  year  in  what  seemed  to  us  then  almost 
the  Western  wilds.  There  were  three  of  us  in 
this  class  and  we  had  the  undivided  attention  of 
President  Burroughs  and  some  able  professors. 
As  our  recitation  hours  were  from  nine  to  two 
o'clock,  each  of  us  had  nearly  two  hours  of  per 
sonal  attention.  We  usually  followed  this  by 
an  hour  in  the  Chicago  gymnasium,  to  which  I 
attribute  the  sturdy  health  which  enabled  me 
afterward  to  brave  four  years  of  campaigning 
with  but  one  day  of  hospital.  The  Chicago 
University  was  a  Baptist  college,  and  after  some 
years  of  usefulness  fell  into  a  moribund  condi 
tion.  It  has  lately  received  an  enormous  gift 
from  John  D.  Rockefeller,  and  will  in  time  be 
one  of  the  greatest  seats  of  learning  in  the  coun 
try.  Chicago  at  that  time  had  about  one  hun- 


CHICAGO  IN  1860.  6 

dred  thousand  population,  nearly  seventy  per 
cent,  of  which  were  of  foreign  birth. 

The  presidential  campaign,  which  ended  in 
the  election  of  Mr.  Lincoln,  was  going  on.  Night 
after  night  processions  of  Wide  Awakes,  many 
thousands  in  numbers,  thronged  its  streets. 
Immense  audiences  at  the  Wigwam  listened  to 
the  stirring  oratory  of  the  best  speakers  of  the 
day.  I  remember  best  the  powerful  speeches  of 
Owen  Love  joy,  the  greatest  stump  orator  I  ever 
heard.  He  would  hold  spellbound  for  two  hours 
at  a  time  nine  thousand  people  in  this  vast  hall, 
tearing  his  coat  off  and  then  his  vest  and  cravat 
in  the  excitement  of  his  invectives  against 
slavery,  though  never  alluding  to  the  fact  that 
but  a  short  time  before  his  brother  had  been 
shot  by  a  pro-slavery  mob. 

Before  the  convention  had  declared  the  will 
of  the  Republican  party,  Seward  seemed  to  be 
the  popular  candidate,  especially  among  the 
young  people  ;  though  some  of  us  from  Maine 
talked  all  we  could  for  the  Hon.  William  Pitt 
Fessenden,  our  lamented  Senator.  Very  few  of 
us  who  had  come  from  the  East  had  heard  of 
Mr.  Lincoln,  but  when  he  was  nominated,  the 
perusal  of  his  great  speeches,  and  the  many  tra 
ditions  extant  of  his  political  successes,  taught 
us  what  kind  of  a  man  he  was. 

The  first  time  I  had  the  pleasure  of  seeing 


4  FOLLOWING   THE   GREEK   CROSS. 

him  was  at  a  party  given  at  the  residence  of 
Hon.  N.  B.  Judd  on  Michigan  Avenue.  I  lately 
saw  this  same  house  still  standing.  The  great 
fire  almost  reached  it.  As  I  went  upstairs,  Mr. 
Lincoln  was  leaning  against  a  door  in  the  gen 
tlemen's  dressing-room,  with  his  hands  crossed 
behind  his  back,  holding  up  the  long  tails  of  a 
very  long  dress-coat,  and  telling  stories  to  sev 
eral  gentlemen  who  were  gathered  around.  All 
who  came  in  joined  the  party,  and  it  was  with 
difficulty  that  their  ladies  could  get  them  to  go 
downstairs.  I  tried  to  remember  some  of  these 
stories,  which  seemed  inimitably  funny  at  the 
time,  but  was  unable  to  catch  them  or  carry 
them  away.  I  have  always  thought  since  that 
Mr.  Lincoln  possessed  the  power  of  inventing 
stories  as  he  went  along,  which  were  intended  to 
illustrate  whatever  thought  he  wished  to  convey, 
and  did  so  in  the  most  vivid  way  possible. 
During  that  winter  I  saw  Mr.  Lincoln  many 
times,  as  he  often  stopped  at  Mr.  Scammon's, 
where  I  lived,  when  he  came  to  Chicago. 

Mr.  Lincoln  and  Mr.  Hamlin,  the  vice-presi 
dent  elect,  met  each  other  for  the  first  time  at 
Mr.  Scammon's  house.  I  saw  them  introduced, 
and  it  was  with  a  deep  look  of  interest  that  each 
regarded  the  other.  Then  they  retired  for  a 
long  personal  consultation.  When  Mr.  Hamlin 
went  away,  Mr.  Lincoln  remarked,  "  Well,  Ham- 


PRESIDENT-ELECT  LINCOLN.  5 

lin  is  n't  half  so  black  as  he  is  painted,  is  he, 
Scammon  ?  "  At  that  time,  the  story  was  cur 
rent  at  the  South  that  our  Maine  statesman  was 
a  mulatto,  on  account  of  his  rich,  dark  com 
plexion. 

When  the  Illinois  Legislature  of  that  winter 
was  in  session,  Mr.  Scammon  was  a  member  of 
the  House,  and  invited  me  to  visit  him  in  Spring 
field  for  three  weeks.  The  night  after  my 
arrival,  I  went  to  the  party  given  by  Mr.  and 
Mrs.  Lincoln  at  their  Springfield  home  just  be 
fore  they  closed  it  and  went  to  the  hotel,  where 
we  were  living,  to  board  until  his  departure  for 
Washington  to  be  inaugurated.  The  house  was 
not  very  large,  as  I  remember  it,  but  the  party 
of  guests  was  enormous.  People  from  all  parts 
of  Illinois  were  there,  and  the  guests  passed 
through  the  rooms  shaking  hands  with  Mr.  and 
Mrs.  Lincoln,  who  were  surrounded  by  a  bevy  of 
beautiful  girls  from  Kentucky,  and  then  most 
of  them  passed  out  and  went  to  the  reception 
Governor  Yates  was  giving  the  same  night  at 
the  Capitol. 

Becoming  acquainted  with  Ellsworth,  after 
wards  colonel  of  the  Fire  Zouaves  and  killed 
at  Alexandria ;  Mr.  Hay  and  Mr.  Nicolay,  who 
were  law  students  in  Mr.  Lincoln's  office,  and 
since  his  biographers,  I  often  went  there  in  the 
afternoon  and  assisted  them  in  looking  over  his 


6  FOLLOWING   THE   GREEK  CROSS. 

mail,  which   at    that    time   filled  several  large 
baskets.     Many  packages  would  come  with  let 
ters,  some  containing  negro  doll  babies,  some, 
dead  rattlesnakes,  and  various  tokens  of   that 
description    from    angry    Southerners.     When 
ever  a  box  looked  particularly  suspicious,   we 
used  to  soak  it  in  water,  fearing  some  infernal 
machine.     Mr.    Lincoln   received   daily   in   his 
office  many  people  from  all  parts  of  the  country, 
and  it  was  very  entertaining  to  me  to  hear  the 
bright  way  in  which  he  would  receive  them,  and 
the  skillful  way  he  met  the  office-seekers.     Of 
all  the  witty  things  I  then  heard  him  say,  only 
one  remains  in  my  memory  to-day.     Dr.  Small, 
the  leading  homreopathic  physician  of  Chicago, 
who  weighed  nearly  three  hundred  pounds,  was 
presented  to  him.     I  remember  Mr.   Lincoln's 
taking   him  by  the   hand,  turning  him  round, 
looking  him  over,  and  saying,   "  Small,  Small  ? 
we    have   a   man   down    in   old   Virginia    that 
they  call  Wise ;  "  referring  to  Governor  Wise, 
who  had  for  some  time  been  acting  in  an  entirely 
different  manner  from  what  his  name  indicated. 
Just  before  the  day  came  for  Mr.  Lincoln  to 
take  his  departure  for  Washington,  many  dis 
tinguished  people  came  to  the  hotel  where  we 
lived  and  many  others  who  afterward  became 
distinguished.     One  day  I   was   introduced   to 
Captain  Pope  and  Major  Hunter,  of  the  regular 


SEVENTY-FIVE   THOUSAND   CALL.  7 

army,  afterward  commanders  of  armies.  Many 
stories  were  rife  of  the  great  dangers  to  be  met 
in  the  journey  to  Washington  by  Mr.  Lincoln's 
party.  Mrs.  Lincoln  was  especially  anxious 
upon  this  point,  and  almost  in  a  state  of  nervous 
prostration.  Mr.  Lincoln  was  kind  enough  to 
invite  me  to  join  the  party,  but  circumstances 
forbade  my  going.  Our  late  distinguished  Min 
ister  to  England,  a  boy  of  about  sixteen,  was  too 
young  to  realize  his  father's  position,  but  I 
remember  well  what  a  universal  favorite  he  was 
with  all,  and  he  certainly  has  continued  to  be  a 
universal  favorite  ever  since.  Ellsworth  was  a 
black-eyed,  handsome,  enthusiastic  boy.  He  had 
recently  taken  his  company  of  Chicago  Zouaves 
upon  an  Eastern  tour,  and  had  been  received  in 
all  the  principal  cities  with  great  applause,  as 
it  was  the  best  drilled  military  company  ever 
organized.  They  were  all  athletes,  trained  in 
the  Chicago  gymnasium,  and  their  evolutions 
were  novel  and  surprising. 

Not  long  after  the  departure  of  Mr.  Lincoln 
for  Washington,  the  rumors  and  fears  of  war 
between  the  sections  came  thicker  and  faster, 
and  when  Mr.  Lincoln  issued  his  call  for  sev 
enty-five  thousand  troops,  the  Chicago  Zouaves 
undertook  to  raise  a  regiment,  of  which  I  had 
the  honor  to  be  a  private  in  Company  D.  As  I 
recollect  it,  the  first  three  companies,  A,  B,  and 


8  FOLLOWING   THE   GREEK   CROSS. 

C,  were  accepted,  and  went  off  to  Cairo,  leaving 
the  rest  of  us  very  much  disgusted  at  home, 
though  we  gave  them  a  rousing  send-off  at  the 
station.  We  might  have  easily  raised  then  all 
the  men  needed  for  the  war,  as  nearly  all  young 
men  were  full  of  patriotism.  When  the  news 
came  of  the  attack  on  the  Massachusetts  troops 
in  the  streets  of  Baltimore,  we  were  still  further 
excited,  and  I  told  my  comrades  I  would  give 
five  years  of  my  life  to  march  a  regiment 
through  that  city.  The  fulfillment  of  the  wish 
came  with  almost  alarming  promptness,  for  only 
four  months  later,  at  the  head  of  the  7th  Maine 
Volunteers,  I  marched  the  whole  length  of  Bal 
timore  Street  to  the  inspiring  strains  of  Yankee 
Doodle.  Events  were  hurrying  swiftly,  and  boys 
aged  very  rapidly  then,  but  I  can  even  now 
hardly  realize  that  the  war  was  fought  mostly 
by  boys  of  eighteen  to  twenty-five  years  of  age. 
But  those  who  were  so  ardently  seeking  to  serve 
their  country  had  very  little  idea  what  was 
meant.  Some  of  them  had  learned  to  read  well 
enough  to  become  excited  over  the  bulletins  of 
victory  during  the  Mexican  war,  and  others  had 
fathers  or  grandfathers  who  had  served  against 
England  in  the  war  of  1812,  either  by  land  or 
sea.  The  great-grandfathers  of  very  many  of  us 
had  fought  the  English  in  the  Revolution,  or 
the  French  and  Indians  during  the  early  settle- 


SEVENTY-FIVE   THOUSAND   CALL.  9 

ments,  for  then  every  ablebodied  man  from 
Eastport  to  Portsmouth  was  a  soldier.  Tradi 
tions  and  tales  of  martial  deeds  still  had  an  in 
fluence  on  that  young  generation ;  so  it  was  not 
difficult  to  excite  the  warlike  spirit,  especially 
after  the  stars  and  stripes  were  fired  upon  at 
Fort  Sumter. 

About  this  time  at  a  dinner  party  at  Mr. 
Scammon's,  several  Illinois  statesmen,  among 
them  Hon.  Lymaii  Trumbull,  being  present,  all 
expressed  the  opinion  that  the  seventy-five  thou 
sand  men  raised  by  Mr.  Lincoln  would  march 
through  to  the  Gulf  of  Mexico  with  little  diffi 
culty.  I  modestly  said  that  when  a  child  I  had 
seen  five  thousand  splendid  militia  under  arms 
at  Charleston,  South  Carolina,  receive  Generals 
Quitman  and  Shields  011  their  return  from  the 
Mexican  war,  and  that  the  militia  of  the  South 
would  alone  require  many  more  than  seventy- 
five  thousand  men  to  overcome  them.  The  dis 
tinguished  statesmen  deigned  no  reply,  but  looked 
at  me  as  if  I  was  very  impertinent,  and  perhaps 
I  was. 

All  the  West,  as  well  as  Chicago,  was  now  at 
fever  heat  of  patriotism,  and  many  regiments 
were  forming  to  march  to  defend  the  Union 
when  Mr.  Lincoln  should  call  for  more  troops. 
Among  these  was  a  regiment  to  be  commanded 
by  the  Hon.  Owen  Love  joy,  called  the  Yates 


10  FOLLOWING   THE   GREEK  CROSS. 

Phalanx,  in  which  I  enlisted,  but  hearing  of  the 
departure  of  the  3d  Maine  which  contained  two 
Bath  companies  and  many  of  my  friends  and 
schoolmates,  to  the  seat  of  war,  and  as  the  col 
lege  authorities  permitted  me  to  take  my  degree, 
I  concluded  not  to  wait  for  commencement,  but 
to  go  home  and  join  some  Maine  regiment. 


CHAPTER  II. 

"  And  blessed  is  a  country  with  stout  hearts  like  these, 
The  tramp  of  her  armies  is  swelling  the  breeze  ; 
They  rush  to  her  rescue,  their  lives  freely  give, 
'T  were  better  to  die  than  in  bondage  to  live." 

MOSES  OWEN. 

ON  arriving  home  from  the  West,  after  a  long 
journey  by  rail  in  cars  whose  discomfort  we  have 
almost  forgotten,  I  found  a  lull  in  the  war  fever, 
and  a  general  opinion  that  it  was  to  be  a  short 
affair.  After  some  weeks  at  Bowdoin  College, 
where  I  taught  the  students  the  Zouave  drill  and 
directed  as  skirmishers  many  future  generals 
and  colonels  down  Main  Street  to  capture  the 
Topsham  bridge,  I  went  home  for  the  last  vaca 
tion,  sadly  feeling  that  my  chance  would  never 
come.  One  day  while  working  about  the  house, 
an  acquaintance  drove  by  and  called  out,  "  Our 
army  has  been  badly  beaten  at  Bull  Run."  Now 
or  never  seemed  the  time  to  go  to  war,  as  more 
troops  must  be  wanted.  That  afternoon  Sam  Fes- 
senden,  who  was  the  son  of  the  Senator,  and  was 
killed  at  Manassas,  George  O.  McLellan,  soon  to 
be  killed  at  Yorktown,  and  George  Morse,  now 
living,  joined  me,  and  as  there  was  no  recruiting 
office  in  town,  we  thought  the  next  thing  to  do 


12  FOLLOWING   THE   GREEK  CROSS. 

was  to  be  sworn  into  the  United  States  service ; 
so  we  went  to  Lawyer  Fred  D.  Sewall  and  were 
solemnly  sworn  into  the  service  of  the  United 
States,  and  I  took  the  next  train  for  Augusta  to 
obtain  papers  to  recruit  a  company.  Meeting 
H.  S.  Hagar,  of  Richmond,  on  the  train,  bound 
on  the  same  errand,  we  agreed  to  join  forces,  and 
in  a  day  or  two  a  recruiting  office  was  opened, 
and  yellow  handbills  were  distributed  as  follows : 

ONE    CHANCE   MORE. 

A  few  good  men  wanted  for  the  Bath  Company  of 
the  7th  Regiment.  Pay  and  sustenance  to  com 
mence  immediately. 

$15.00  A  MONTH. 

$22.00  bounty  and  $100.00  when  mustered  out  of 
service.  Apply  at  their  recruiting  office,  opposite  J. 
M.  Gookin's  store,  Front  Street. 

BATH,  MAINE,  Aug.  6,  '61. 

The  company  was  called  the  Harding  Zouaves. 

Col.  E.  K.  Harding,  of  Bath,  then  quarter 
master-general  of  the  State,  had  a  rare  faculty 
of  encouraging  young  men  and  winning  their 
admiration,  and  to  his  kindly  efforts  and  judi 
cious  advice  I  owed  much  then  and  afterward. 
Praise  judiciously  bestowed  from  those  we  look 
up  to  is  so  rare  that  I  have  preserved  the  mem 
ory  of  his  kind  words  now  many  a  year  since  ; 
in  sorrow  we  said,  "  Peace  go  with  him." 


IN  CAMP  AT  AUGUSTA.  13 

The  first  accession  gained  in  my  new  office, 
which  had  for  furniture  one  chair  and  a  table, 
was  what  we  would  now  call  a  tramp ;  the  word 
was  unknown  then.  He  had  but  one  eye,  and 
claimed  to  have  served  in  the  British  army ;  so 
we  looked  on  him  with  a  certain  reverence  his 
appearance  never  could  have  claimed,  and  gave 
him  of  the  fat  of  the  land.  He  soon  deserted, 
but  he  had  fulfilled  his  mission  :  he  had  given  us 
hope  of  success,  so  his  brief  tarry  in  the  colonies 
was  of  some  avail.  But  men  began  to  come  in 
and  were  sent  to  Augusta  daily,  and  soon  I  fol 
lowed  them,  anxious  to  taste  the  sweets  of  com 
mand.  On  the  long,  beautiful  slopes  between 
the  State  House  and  the  river,  Sibley  tents  were 
pitched.  They  were  like  an  Indian  tepee  in 
shape.  Hundreds  of  men  of  the  7th  Regiment 
were  already  in  camp,  and  I  soon  found  Com 
pany  D,  and  was  received  by  Lieutenant  Morse 
with  all  the  honors,  and  a  supper  that  no  one 
can  appreciate  who  has  not  eaten  beans  baked  in 
a  hole  in  the  ground.  Soon  after  supper  it  be 
gan  to  rain,  and  as  our  tents,  though  floored  with 
planed  boards  and  containing  plenty  of  blankets, 
had  no  straw,  it  struck  me  that  it  was  a  cruel 
hardship  to  treat  brave  men  so,  and  I  mustered 
the  company  and  marched  them  off  to  the  near 
est  hotel  and  put  them  up  at  my  own  expense. 
I  then  invited  the  lieutenants  to  sleep  in  camp 


14  FOLLOWING   THE   GREEK  CROSS. 

with  me,  so  we  could  inure  ourselves  to  cam 
paigning  ;  but  with  the  novelty  and  excitement 
we  sat  up  and  told  stories  till  it  was  time  to  go 
the  grand  rounds,  which  thrilling  peace-time 
military  ceremony  impressed  us  deeply.  Before 
morning  the  rain  ceased,  but  not  the  mosquitoes, 
and  when  the  company  sauntered  leisurely  down 
to  breakfast  they  saw  their  officers  looking  as  if 
they  had  been  up  all  night  watching  with  the 
sick. 

The  next  day  arms  were  issued  to  us :  Win- 
sor  rifles,  with  plenty  of  brass  trimmings  to  keep 
clean,  and  sabre  bayonets.  Very  proud  we  were 
of  them,  and  when  we  came  to  use  them  we 
found  they  shot  pretty  straight.  Cumbersome 
as  the  sabre  bayonets  were,  they  were  good  to 
dig  shelter  with,  and  several  times  I  have  seen 
their  long  leveled  lines  carry  consternation  to 
the  gray-clothed  foe. 

Fresh  from  my  Zouave  training,  I  soon  had 
Company  D  in  shape,  and  I  loved  every  man  in 
it.  The  delight  of  a  first  command  was  on  me, 
and  even  now  I  can  see  the  faces  of  all,  from 
the  tall  man  on  the  right  to  little  Charlie  Price, 
the  shortest,  on  the  left.  I  see  them  just  as  they 
looked  then,  enthusiastic  and  boyish,  but  of 
those  eighty  most  are  now  with  the  silent  ma 
jority.  Four  years  in  the  7th  Maine  did  not 
prove  favorable  to  longevity.  They  were  going 


LIEUTENANT-COLONEL    T.   W.   HYDE 


ELECTION  OF  OFFICERS.  15 

to  the  call  of  duty,  to  brave  they  knew  not 
what ;  but  as  the  flag  had  been  insulted  and 
the  majesty  of  the  United  States  defied,  that  was 
enough  for  them.  Twenty-two  dollars  bounty 
and  fifteen  dollars  a  month  was  no  inducement 
and  little  thought  of.  Even  as  the  raw  levies 
flocked  to  Washington's  camp  after  Bunker 
Hill,  so  these  fresher  levies  were  coming  from 
forest  and  forge-  to  support  Abraham  Lincoln, 
who  now,  thirty  years  after,  seems  almost  deified 
to  us  in  his  simple  greatness.  It  is  hard  to 
imagine  our  forefathers  of  the  Revolution  as 
other  than  men  gray  and  grave  in  homespun 
garb  of  the  Continental  cut ;  but  they  were  boys 
like  these,  ruddy  and  of  cheerful  countenance, 
like  these,  moved  by  a  divine  afflatus  to  fight 
for  freedom.  Then  it  was  for  the  personal  free 
dom  of  themselves  and  neighbors ;  but  now, 
though  few  realized  it,  for  the  freedom  of  the 
down-trodden  and  the  lowly.  So  God  bless  the 
boys  that  carried  a  musket  then,  and  His  poor 
should  ever  bless  them. 

In  a  few  days  the  company  officers  were  sum 
moned  to  the  Senate  chamber  to  choose  field 
officers  by  ballot.  Adjutant  General  Hodgdon 
presided.  He  is  still  living,  and  all  Maine  sol 
diers  remember  him,  imperious  and  energetic, 
yet  kindly,  and  doing  great  work  for  the  cause. 
We  looked  at  each  other  askance,  being  hardly 


16  FOLLOWING   THE   GREEK  CROSS. 

acquainted  as  yet,  and  finally  I  proposed  that 
we  put  some  regular  officer  in  for  colonel,  as 
none  of  us  knew  much  about  the  business.  This 
was  seconded,  and  some  one  had  the  name,  taken 
from  an  advertisement,  of  Edwin  C.  Mason,  cap 
tain  of  the  17th  Infantry,  recruiting  in  Portland. 
So  we  chose  him  colonel.  Then  it  was  suor- 

o 

gested  by  a  man  from  Kendall's  Mills  that 
Selden  Connor,  about  finishing  his  term  of  three 
months'  service  in  the  1st  Vermont,  and  soon 
coming  home  as  sergeant,  would  know  some 
thing  about  it,  and  would  be  a  good  man  for 
lieutenant-colonel,  so  we  chose  him.  We  made 
no  mistake  there.  Then  they  insisted  on  mak 
ing,  me  major  in  spite  of  my  extreme  youth,  as 
I  was  the  only  man  in  the  regiment  who  could 
drill  a  company.  Even  now  I  can  recall  the 
thrill  of  joy  and  dread  and  gratified  pride  that 
the  unexpected  vote  gave  me ;  but  the  responsi 
bilities  were  too  huge  and  I  promptly  declined, 
and  would  probably  have  persisted  in  declining, 
had  not  Mr.  John  B.  S wanton  and  Colonel  Hard 
ing,  by  their  encouragement  and  insistence,  al 
most  forced  me  into  it.  I  did  not  know  then 
that  the  principal  duties  of  a  major  were  to  ride 
on  the  flank  of  the  rear  division,  say  nothing, 
look  as  well  as  possible,  and  long  for  promotion. 
The  two  lieutenants  soon  heard  of  my  unex 
pected  exaltation,  and  promptly  took  the  train 


START  FOR  THE  FRONT.  17 

for  their  homes,  neither  being  willing  to  take 
the  captaincy ;  and  it  was  only  on  my  promising 
to  be  captain,  too,  till  I  could  find  a  substitute, 
that  I  was  able  to  get  them  back  to  camp. 

It  was  intended  that  the  7th  Maine  should 
stay  long  enough  in  camp  at  Augusta  to  get 
some  cohesion  and  be  able  to  march  together ; 
but  long  before  they  did  it  happened  that  or 
ders  came  to  send  us  to  the  front.  Imagine  my 
consternation  on  receiving  them,  when  I  re 
flected  that  the  colonel  had  not  yet  been  al 
lowed  by  the  war  department  to  accept,  that  the 
lieutenant-colonel  had  not  come,  and  that  I,  the 
newly  fledged  major,  had  to  take  this  mob  of 
one  thousand  men  to  Washington.  To  make  it 
worse,  when  the  order  to  break  camp  came,  it 
was  a  literal  copy  of  the  one  used  by  Colonel 
O.  O.  Howard,  a  West  Pointer,  to  take  the  3d 
Maine  out  of  Augusta.  He  had  taken  one  used 
at  West  Point  for  some  grand  function  by  the 
corps  of  cadets,  and  it  was  longer  than  one  of 
Grant's  orders  moving  the  army  toward  Rich 
mond.  I  remember  the  tent  pegs  were  to  be 
pulled  in  order  at  tap  of  drum,  and  the  opera 
tion  of  taking  care  of  them  would  take  a  week 
to  learn. 

Now  I  supposed  all  this  had  got  to  be  done, 
and  I  was  appalled  at  my  ignorance  and  inef 
ficiency.  However,  my  good  friends,  Colonel 


18  FOLLOWING   THE   GREEK  CROSS. 

Harding  and  Governor  Washburn,  cheered  me 
up,  and  the  task  was  accomplished  during  an 
entire  summer  night ;  but  as  I  had  not  yet  had 
time  to  get  a  uniform,  and  few  of  the  regiment 
knew  me,  I  think  my  personal  interposition  did 
not  avail  much.  The  gray  of  the  morning 
found  us  in  long  line  of  battle,  knapsacks 
packed,  and  fortunately  for  me  it  was  not  far 
to  the  cars ;  and  when  we  got  there  the  boys 
were  anxious  to  get  on,  so  it  was  with  a  happy 
heart  that  I  felt  the  long  train  start,  in  spite 
of  the  fact  that  for  me,  as  for  others,  mother 
and  sisters  were  waving  their  handkerchiefs  and 
looking  their  last  at  us  through  weeping  eyes. 

What  man  of  all  the  vast  host  then  drawing 
toward  the  Potomac  suffered  more  or  did  more 
for  the  country  than  the  widowed  mother  who 
sent  her  only  son  ! 


CHAPTER  III. 

"  And  lovely  ladies  greet  our  band 
With  kindliest  welcoming1. " 

BRYANT. 

HANDKERCHIEFS  waved  from  every  f armliouse, 
cheers  arose  at  every  station,  while  our  band 
played  and  the  colors  were  flaunted  from  the  car 
platforms,  and  so  we  jolted  on  the  most  of  the 
day,  the  excitement  not  abating  when  in  a 
column,  nearly  a  thousand  strong,  we  filed  into 
Faneuil  Hall  to  take  a  lunch  provided  by  the 
city  of  Boston.  Many  dignitaries  watched  our 
noble  appetites  from  the  galleries,  and  when  the 
meal  was  disposed  of  all  arose :  long,  lithe  sons 
of  Aroostook,  Indians  from  the  Penobscot  tribe, 
pale-faced  clerks  from  the  towns,  river-drivers 
from  the  Androscoggin,  sailors  just  off  blue 
waters,  keen-eyed  hunters  from  Moosehead  Lake, 
old  soldiers  of  her  Majesty,  and  a  few  of  the 
Irish  who  in  all  times  have  scented  the  battle 
from  afar,  —  all  this  mass  of  men,  now  so  heter 
ogeneous,  rose  to  their  feet  and  made  the  welkin 
ring  with  cheers  for  the  Cradle  of  Liberty. 

We  took  a  boat  that  night,  I  think  at  Ston- 
ington,  and  landed  at  Elizabethport,  to  find  in 


20  FOLLOWING   THE   GREEK  CROSS. 

New  Jersey  and  Pennsylvania  the  same  exciting 
God-speed.  When  we  came  to  Havre  de  Grace, 
orders  reached  us  to  stop  in  Baltimore,  and  many 
rumors  came  of  fighting  in  the  streets  of  the  city. 
Who  does  not  recollect  the  myriads  of  rumors 
that  were  always  flying  about  in  war-time  ?  We 
had  read  as  boys  so  lately  of  Rumor  depicted  as 
a  bird  with  a  hundred  mouths  and  ears  and  an 
eye  in  each  feather ;  and  in  those  days  there 
must  have  been  many  like  it  to  have  carried 
the  stories  that  were  always  throwing  in  the 
shade  the  truth ;  and  the  truth  required  no  ex 
aggeration  —  it  was  sufficiently  exciting  in  itself. 

The  6th  Massachusetts  had  fought  their  way 
through  Baltimore,  and  it  was  thought  that  we 
would  be  obliged  to  do  so  likewise. 

No  ammunition  had  yet  been  issued  to  us,  and 
on  looking  through  the  regiment  I  found  that 
there  was  but  one  pistol  in  the  command  that 
had  cartridges.  So  careful  instructions  were 
given  to  all  to  attack  with  the  sabre  bayonet  any 
one  who  tried  to  molest  us.  We  got  to  Rullman's 
beer  garden  in  West  Baltimore,  however,  with 
out  other  greeting  than  sour  looks,  to  meet  a 
worse  enemy.  The  place  was  surrounded  by 
grog-shops,  and  in  less  time  almost  than  it  takes 
to  tell  it  a  goodly  number  of  the  7th  Maine 
were  fast  getting  beyond  control.  As  soon  as 
possible  I  got  over  to  Fort  Me  Henry,  and  re- 


IN  A  BEER   GARDEN.  21 

ported  to  old  General  Dix  commanding ;  and 
after  I  had,  with  difficulty,  made  him  compre 
hend  that  such  a  youth  could  be  a  field  officer, 
I  procured  a  supply  of  handcuffs  from  him,  and 
before  dark  the  unruly  were  safely  confined 
under  an  old  band-stand ;  and  the  camp  slept  in 
peace,  except  when  occasionally  awakened  by  the 
sentinels,  who,  being  without  cartridges,  would 
shout  out  to  each  other  to  keep  their  courage  up 
during  the  watches  of  the  night. 

The  next  day  was  enlivened  by  a  riot,  as 
many  were  discontented  at  the  quality  of  the 
soft  bread  furnished,  and  sought  the  quarter 
master  to  hang  him,  but  that  gentleman  could 
not  be  found,  and  after  a  time  the  riot  was 
quieted  by  bringing  into  use  our  single  pistol, 
and  the  firm  front  of  the  officers. 

Soon  many  of  the  other  troops  came  to  see  us 
from  camps  not  far  away,  and  all  remarked,  as 
we  turned  out  for  dress  parade,  the  great  size 
of  the  sons  of  Maine.  I  remember,  when  any 
one  of  the  early  Maine  regiments  passed,  that 
was  the  usual  comment ;  but  disease  seemed  to 
revel  in  smiting  the  big  men,  and  to  particularly 
select  those  who  from  their  former  occupations 
should  have  been  hardiest  and  most  robust, 
while  none  seemed  to  stand  hardships  better 
than  the  clerks  from  the  towns,  the  country 
schoolmasters,  and  even  those  who  had  been 


22  FOLLOWING   THE   GREEK  CROSS. 

most  delicately  nurtured.  Had  any  of  us  then 
had  the  slightest  conception  of  the  laws  of  health 
or  known  anything  about  taking  care  of  men  in 
camp  and  on  the  march,  the  record  might  have 
been  different  and  the  tall  men  on  the  right  been 
more  successfully  preserved.  Knowledge  of  this 
kind  is  more  useful  in  war  than  that  of  tactics, 
and  at  any  rate  should  be  equally  studied.  One 
of  the  secrets  of  Napoleon's  success  is  that  he 
was  a  great  master  of  this  branch  of  his  profes 
sion,  and,  while  he  might  appear  to  be  reckless 
of  his  men  in  battle,  he  was  usually  most  watch 
ful  of  their  comfort  and  health  in  camp. 

After  a  week  in  the  beer  garden,  we  were 
ordered  to  change  to  Patterson  Park  on  the 
other  side  of  the  city,  and  in  better  discipline 
and  form  we  marched  the  whole  length  of  Balti 
more,  the  band  playing  Yankee  Doodle  most 
of  the  way.  Our  camp  here  was  an  ideal  one, 
and  the  surrounding  people  were  mostly  for  the 
Union.  Feeling  was  then  intense  on  either  side. 
The  rebel  ladies  would  get  off  the  sidewalk  if 
they  saw  a  hated  Yankee  coming,  but  the  loyal 
people  entertained  us  to  the  utmost  of  their 
power,  and  the  little  children  would  take  our 
hands  and  cling  to  us  as  we  walked  as  far  as  the 
end  of  the  block.  Our  band  with  Ingraham  as 
leader  was  the  old  Bath  Band,  and  night  after 
night  the  young  officers  —  and  we  were  mostly 


ROMANCE   OF   WAR.  23 

young  —  would  go  out  with  it  to  serenade  the 
fair,  and  in  return  receive  the  best  of  Maryland 
good  cheer,  the  best  in  the  world,  and  there  is 
no  better  in  America.  Joe  Berry,  of  the  band, 
would  sing  "  The  Sword  of  Bunker  Hill "  and 
"  Our  Flag  is  There  "  as  a  finale,  and  when  we 
sauntered  home  by  moonlight  in  the  soft,  flower- 
scented  Southern  air,  it  seemed  as  if  soldiering 
was  a  very  good  business.  Indeed,  no  one  can 
enjoy  more  than  the  soldier  the  respite  which 
sometimes  comes  in  war.  The  excitement  of 
campaigning  is  delicious,  the  reaction  from  it  is 
not  without  its  pleasure,  and  many  of  us  were 
already  prescient  enough  of  the  future  to  feel 
that  — 

"  Why  should  we  be  melancholy,  boys, 
Whose  business  't  is  to  die  ?  " 


CHAPTER  IV. 

Dogberry.  Why,  then,  take  no  note  of  him,  but  let  him  go  ; 
and  presently  call  the  rest  of  the  Watch  together,  and  thank 
God  you  are  rid  of  a  knave. 

Much  Ado  about  Nothing. 

WHILE  in  camp  at  Patterson  Park  Lieutenant- 
Colonel  Selden  Connor,  since  four  years  gover 
nor  of  Maine,  returning  from  his  three  months' 
service,  joined  us.  Colonel  Mason  was  not  given 
leave  of  absence  from  the  regular  army,  so  Gov 
ernor  Washburn  appointed  as  colonel,  Thomas 
H.  Marshall  of  Belfast.  He  had  been  lieutenant- 
colonel  of  the  4th  Maine,  and  was  formerly  a 
successful  lawyer  and  president  of  the  Maine 
Senate.  Their  arrival  relieved  me  from  anxiety 
and  responsibility,  and  beyond  teaching  the  line 
officers  their  bayonet  exercise  and  the  broad 
sword,  and  practicing  fencing  and  pistol  shooting, 
I  had  little  to  do  but  enjoy  myself. 

About  that  time  I  made  the  acquaintance  of 
Dr.  Washington,  a  surgeon  in  the  army  and  a 
most  fascinating  gentleman.  He  claimed  to  be 
of  the  family  of  the  father  of  his  country.  He 
had  traveled  extensively,  had  been  entertained 
by  the  Sultan  and  the  Shah,  and  seemed  to  have 


A  REBEL   SPY.  25 

a  smattering  of  every  accomplishment  —  was  a 
sort  of  "Admirable  Crichton "  —and  why  he 
attached  himself  to  me  I  have  never  learned. 
He  bought  a  horse  for  me  and  the  horse  turned 
out  all  right.  He  superintended  choice  dishes 
and  loaded  me  with  fine  cigars.  He  introduced 
me  to  Thomas  Winans,  the  great  railway  con 
tractor,  who  told  me  of  his  Kussian  experiences 
and  explained  his  cigar-shaped  ship.  He  was  a 
great  friend  of  the  lady  abbess,  and  promised  to 
present  me  to  the  "  Secesh  "  society  who  were 
the  "  400  "  of  Baltimore. 

One  day  I  went  to  call  on  him,  but  he  was 
gone,  and  great  search  was  made  for  him,  but  he 
was  never  found.  He  was  a  most  accomplished 
and  adroit  rebel  spy.  I  had  to  stand  a  good  deal 
of  chaffing  about  my  friend  Dr.  Washington, 
but  it  may  be  that  he  wanted  to  be  seen  to  be 
intimate  with  some  Union  officer,  to  avert  sus 
picion.  Two  years  later  I  heard  of  his  death  in 
battle  at  the  head  of  a  Confederate  cavalry  regi 
ment  in  Kentucky. 

We  fared  well  in  this  camp,  for  a  refined  and 
skillful  gentleman,  unable  to  do  full  duty  as  a 
private  on  account  of  his  eyes,  took  charge  of 
our  cuisine.  Though  our  bill  of  fare  was  limited 
I  can  never  forget  Dr.  Forbes's  breakfasts  of 
peaches  and  cream,  followed  by  steak  and  fried 
potatoes,  which  he  used  to  accompany  by  a 


26  FOLLOWING   THE   GREEK   CROSS. 

choice  repertoire  of  songs  and  the  guitar.  I 
think  we  were  always  hungry  in  those  days,  and 
it  grew  upon  us  in  the  after  campaigning  un 
til  the  engrossing  subject  was,  where  were  we 
to  get  and  how  were  we  to  get  something  to  eat. 
It  took  precedence  of  our  interest  in  the  enemy. 
Almost  anything  tasted  good,  and  it  was  often 
well  that  it  was  so.  But  we  knew  not  how  to  be 
thankful  for  the  keen,  unspoiled  appetite  of 
youth,  sharpened  by  the  open  air  and  constant 
exercise,  and  as  we  were  seldom  confident  about 
the  next  meal  we  usually  paid  devoted  attention 
to  the  one  in  hand. 

It  was  a  custom,  sanctioned  by  ancient  mili 
tary  usage,  for  a  major  to  have  a  servant,  and  I 
had  one ;  but  I  had  not  learned  in  Bowdoin  Col 
lege  what  to  do  with  him,  so,  after  dressing  him 
up  in  a  sort  of  livery,  I  set  to  work  to  spoil  him 
and  succeeded  very  well  for  a  time.  Fortunately 
for  him,  however,  he  soon  grew  big  enough  to 
enlist,  and  at  sixteen  years  of  age  Sam  was  as 
brave  as  Julius  Caesar.  A  regiment  of  such  lit 
tle  fellows,  like  the  "gamins"  of  Paris,  would 
have  gone  anywhere. 

Our  chief  worry  now  was  that  the  Army  of 
the  Potomac,  slowly  organizing  in  front  of 
Washington,  should  move  on  the  enemy  and 
leave  us  behind.  This  illustrates  the  happy 
condition  of  benighted  ignorance  we  were  in.  I 


VISIT  TO    WASHINGTON.  27 

succeeded  in  getting  permission  to  go  to  Wash 
ington,  and  with  awe  beheld  the  dome  of  the 

o 

Capitol  for  the  first  time.  Those  who  only 
know  the  city  as  it  is  now,  beautiful  among  all 
the  cities  of  the  earth,  could  not  realize  the 
shambling,  straggling,  dirty,  and  forlorn  place  it 
was  then.  Most  of  the  present  public  buildings 
were  there  then  as  now,  but  the  spirit  of  the  old 
South  and  of  slavery  had  given  it  such  a  dishev 
eled,  shabby,  tumble-down  appearance,  it  hardly 
seemed  worth  fighting  for.  Army  wagons  and 
batteries  constantly  passing  had  cut  up  the 
streets,  staff  officers  and  orderlies  were  splash 
ing  through  the  mud,  and  the  hum  of  warlike 
preparation  was  everywhere.  I  reported  to  Gen 
eral  Howard,  and  volunteered  to  serve  on  his 
staff  should  a  forward  movement  leave  the  regi 
ment  behind,  and  then  went  to  the  Treasury  to 
get  paid  off,  receiving  $500  in  gold.  I  felt  much 
like  Cro3sus  and  the  Count  of  Monte  Cristo 
rolled  into  one,  and  I  doubt  if  A.  T.  Stewart  ever 
had  such  a  poignant  realization  of  wealth.  The 
heavy  twenty-dollar  pieces  soon  got  burdensome, 
and  I  took  them  back  and  exchanged  them  for 
greenbacks  at  par.  Not  very  long  after  this 
same  gold  was  worth  twice  as  much  in  green 
backs,  and  it  was  practically  the  same  as  cutting 
down  the  pay  of  the  army  by  half.  There  was 
very  little  growling  about  it,  which  shows  what 


28  FOLLOWING   THE   GREEK   CROSS. 

weight  the  names  of  things  have  with  men  gen 
erally.  We  were  then  having  worse  things  to 
growl  at,  however. 

During  the  balance  of  my  visit  my  friend  and 
townsman  E.  B.  Nealley  (lately  mayor  of  Ban- 
gor),  who  was  in  the  Navy  Department,  where 
he  did  many  kindnesses  for  Bath  boys,  showed 
me  the  sights  of  the  city,  and  dispelled  the  idea 
I  had  that  the  Army  of  the  Potomac  might 
move  before  spring.  So  I  returned  to  camp  in 
a  more  contented  frame  of  mind,  and  was  soon 
busy  with  a  detail  of  men  building  a  permanent 
fort  at  Canton,  a  suburb  of  Baltimore.  Colonel 
Marshall,  who  had  worked  faithfully  and  inces 
santly  in  getting  his  command  into  shape,  be 
came  very  ill,  and  while  he  was  lying  between 
life  and  death  the  longed-for  orders  to  join  the 
army  came.  At  daybreak  of  a  winter  morning 
we  broke  camp,  and  just  as  we  were  passing, 
with  no  drums  beating,  the  house  where  he  lay, 
his  spirit  took  its  flight.  We  believed  then  that 
rare  distinction  had  been  his  could  he  have  been 
spared.  No  old  soldier  but  honors  those  so  for 
tunate  to  be  killed  in  battle,  but  the  greater 
number  of  those  dying  before  the  battle  should 
have  their  equal  meed  of  honor.  It  is  not  such 
a  difficult  thing  to  do  well  in  the  excitement  of 
action.  An  American  in  good  health  rarely 
does  otherwise. 


WE  ENTER    VIRGINIA.  29 

On  reaching  Washington,  we  marched  down 
Pennsylvania  Avenue  to  the  White  House  and 
then  through  open  fields  and  many  camps,  till 
we  bivouacked  for  the  night  on  Kalorama  Hill, 
where  the  rain  seemed  to  pour  faster  than  any 
where  else.  This  was  scarcely  a  stone's  throw 
from  where  the  millionaire  widow,  Mrs.  Patten, 
has  lately  built  one  of  the  finest  houses  in 
Washington.  This  camp  was  so  dreary  that 
some  of  us  thought  that  we  should  prefer  Wil- 
lard's  Hotel,  and  we  got  there  wet  through  and 
through.  It  looked  then  about  as  now,  only  it 
was  so  full  they  were  putting  as  many  cots 
into  a  room  as  it  would  hold.  I  was  fortunate 
enough  to  find  my  uncle  there,  and  he  caused 
the  fatted  calf  to  be  killed  for  us ;  and  the  rain 
still  coming  down  in  sheets  we  accepted  cots  in 
a  back  corridor  and  were  lucky  to  get  them. 
Everybody  there  seemed  to  be  wanting  some 
thing:  whether  it  was  a  contract  or  office  or 
promotion  or  news  or  a  drink,  the  feeling  per 
vaded  the  atmosphere  and  was  very  infectious. 
Our  stay  at  Kalorama  was  short.  With  joyful 
hearts  we  soon  crossed  Chain  Bridge  into  Vir 
ginia  at  the  route  step,  the  band  playing  "  Away 
Down  South  to  the  Land  of  Cotton  ;  "  and  we 
rejoiced,  not  realizing  how  many  of  us  would 
never  return  to  Northern  soil. 


CHAPTER  V. 

"  And  when  our  rights  were  threatened,  the  cry  rose  near  and 

far, 
Hurrah  for  the  bonnie  blue  flag1,  that  bears  the  single  star !  " 

WE  went  into  permanent  camp  a  few  miles 
south  of  the  Potomac  and  became  a  part  of  the 
Third  Brigade  of  "  Baldy  "  Smith's  Second  Di 
vision,  Sixth  Corps,  to  which  we  belonged  all 
through  the  war.  Camp  Griffin  was  the  name 
given  to  our  part  of  the  line,  and  the  enemy 
were  supposed  to  be  in  front  in  mythical  num 
bers.  It  soon  fell  to  my  lot  to  command  the 
brigade  picket  line.  I  had  read  as  a  child 
"  Hoyt's  Military  Instruction,"  which  belonged 
to  my  father  when  an  officer  in  the  war  of  1812. 
I  remembered  the  rules  for  the  defense  of  de 
tached  posts,  so  established  my  reserve  at  the 
best  house  behind  the  line  and  caused  it  to  be 
pierced  for  musketry  and  had  rifle  pits  dug  to 
command  the  approaches  —  which  improved  the 
garden  about  as  much  as  the  embrasures  did  the 
parlor  walls.  This  did  not  please  the  owners, 
two  vinegary  looking  dames  whose  son  and  hus 
band  were  riding  with  Ashby,  but  as  I  was 
momentarily  expecting  the  rebels  to  appear  I 


CAMP   GRIFFIN.  31 

took  great  pleasure  in  my  fortification.  I  don't 
think  they  appeared  once  that  winter,  however, 
though  picket  duty  became  very  disagreeable 
as  the  novelty  wore  off  and  the  frost  and  snow 
increased.  We  then  thought  it  necessary  for 
all  to  keep  awake  all  night,  and  the  advanced 
posts  were  visited  very  often.  This  most  im 
portant  duty  was  well  learned  that  winter. 
Once  the  detail  for  picket  duty  was  entirely  of 
Germans,  and  the  whole  three  hundred,  march 
ing  homeward  over  the  snow,  as  the  sun  was 
about  to  rise  and  the  eastern  sky  had  taken  on 
a  rosy  hue,  struck  up  in  perfect  harmony 
"  Morgen  Roth,"  —  the  red  morning,  a  German 
war  song,  —  and  we  thought  of  the  warriors 
who  ages  ago  sang  the  song  of  Roland  before 
engaging  in  battle. 

While  on  picket  I  shot  with  my  revolver  the 
only  Virginians,  I  am  glad  to  say,  I  killed  dur 
ing  the  war,  and  we  cooked  them  in  the  camp 
kettle  and  found  opossum  fairly  good.  As  we 
got  more  used  to  the  country  we  would  occa 
sionally  get  a  meal  at  some  of  the  houses  away 
from  the  line  and  pay  them  well  and  be  as  polite 
as  possible,  but  though  we  longed  for  the  society 
of  ladies  we  did  not  get  much  nearer  to  it  than  to 
hear  "  The  Bonnie  Blue  Flag  "  played  on  the 
piano  in  the  neighboring  room.  It  took  some 
time  to  realize  the  enmity  of  the  Southern 


32  FOLLOWING  THE   GREEK   CROSS. 

women.  We  were  always  courteous  and  con 
siderate  to  them  and  could  not  at  first  understand 
their  universal  bitterness,  and  that  it  was  wholly 
patriotism  in  their  eyes. 

These  changes  in  our  mode  of  life  and  un 
wonted  exposure  made  much  sickness  in  the 
regiment,  and  scarcely  a  day  passed  that  did  not 
add  to  the  growing  cemetery  over  the  hill ;  and 
the  "  Dead  March  in  Saul,"  played  by  the  band 
at  each  funeral,  almost  lost  its  sadness  by  repe 
tition. 

Colonel  Mason  finally  secured  permission  from 
the  war  department  to  take  command  of  us, 
and  as  he  was  a  most  excellent  drill  officer  and 
disciplinarian  we  soon  became  proud  of  our  pro 
ficiency.  It  was  a  sad  bore  for  me  to  follow 
with  the  rear  division  during  many  hours  of 
battalion  drill,  but  the  education  was  salutary. 
We  had  white  gloves,  shoulder  scales,  and  new 
uniforms,  and  fancied  ourselves  very  much  like 
regulars.  Many  droll  characters  appear  among 
a  lot  of  men  brought  from  so  many  places  and 
avocations.  Our  regimental  tailor,  Dennis  Ma- 
honey,  who  was  born  near  the  groves  of  Blarney, 
and  who  claimed  to  be  a  relative  of  Father 
Prout,  early  became  as  well  known  as  any.  I 
first  remember  seeing  him  one  frosty  morning 
near  the  guard  house,  with  feet  fettered  and  a 
barrel  put  over  him,  above  which  his  eyes  were 


IRISH   VOLUNTEERS.  33 

twinkling.  "Me  bould  Major,  a  man  is  a 
man  if  he  is  in  a  bar'l,"  was  his  salutation,  and 
I  had  him  set  free  at  once.  That  evening-, 
while  we  were  in  the  colonel's  tent,  somebody 
scratched  for  admission  and  Dennis's  head  ap 
peared  very  much  the  worse  for  wear.  "  Me 
gallant  Colonel,"  said  he  with  a  Chesterfieldian 
bow,  —  "  Sergeant  of  the  guard,  arrest  this 
man,"  shouted  the  colonel.  "  Ye  poor  little 
grasshopper  —  to  h — 11  wid  ye  !  "  said  Dennis 
with  immense  disdain  ;  and  this  took  the  colonel 
in  a  tender  place,  for  he  weighed  little  over  a 
hundred  pounds.  Dennis  had  to  go  to  the  guard 
house  once  more  and  sleep  off  his  exultation  and 
dream  he  was  again  by  the  pleasant  waters  of 
the  river  Lee. 

A  countryman  of  Dennis,  one  Thomas  Mc- 
Nillis,  of  Company  D,  his  ramrod  in  his  loaded 
gun  barrel  and  himself  well  charged  with  fire 
water,  started  one  day  with  the  expressed  in 
tention  of  cleaning  out  the  "  buck  tails,"  a 
Pennsylvania  regiment  so  called  because  they 
wore  buck  tails  in  their  hats,  and  who  were  en 
camped  not  far  from  us.  He  succeeded  in 
reaching  a  hill  that  commanded  their  camp,  and 
opened  fire.  They  were  aroused  by  Tom's  ram 
rod  swishing  through  their  tents.  He  could  not 
load  again,  but  charged  the  camp  with  the  bayo 
net,  and  was  soon  so  soundly  thrashed  that  he 
died  not  long  after. 


34  FOLLOWING  THE   GREEK  CROSS. 

One  niglit  came  my  first  independent  com 
mand,  and  I  received  it  with  great  joy.  I  was 
ordered  to  take  two  companies  and  go  out  some 
seven  miles  beyond  our  lines  to  intercept  some 
of  the  enemy,  who  were  said  to  be  on  the  return 
from  an  expedition  beyond  our  right.  We 
started  after  dark  and  arrived  at  our  destination 
by  midnight ;  and  I  put  my  men  carefully  in 
ambush,  after  a  method  I  had  read  was  used 
by  Marion  and  Sumter  to  confound  the  British. 
Breathless  and  breakfastless  we  awaited  the 
coming  of  the  foe.  I  intended  to  suffer  them 
to  pass  our  first  ambush,  which  was  to  take 
them  in  the  rear  when  our  firing  began,  and 
each  man  had  careful  personal  instructions  ;  but, 
alas !  they  came  not,  and  I  don't  believe  there 
was  a  rebel  within  ten  miles.  It  was  lucky  for 
them,  and  for  us,  too,  perhaps,  that  they  did 
not  come ;  so  we  got  back  to  camp  again,  and 
my  brief  dream  of  glory  was  sadly  dispelled. 
We  found  the  whole  division  wildly  cheering 
for  Grant's  victory  at  Fort  Donelson. 


CHAPTER  VI. 

"  When  first  under  fire  and  you  're  wishful  to  duck, 
Don't  look  or  take  heed  at  the  man  that  is  struck, 
Be  thankful  you  're  living1  and  trust  to  your  luck, 
And  march  to  your  front  like  a  soldier." 

Barrack-Room  Ballads. 

THE  Army  of  the  Potomac  was  now  a  well 
disciplined  and  drilled  body  of  more  than  a 
hundred  thousand  men,  and  in  better  heart  to  do 
fighting  than  it  ever  was  in  later  years.  Dur 
ing  its  first  engagements  all  were  anxious  to  get 
into  the  fray,  even  officers'  servants,  and  other 
detailed  men,  taking  their  guns  and  their  places 
in  the  ranks  of  their  own  free  will.  McClellan 
had  employed  all  his  matchless  talents  for  or 
ganization  during  many  months  upon  this  army, 
and  near  spring  a  grand  review  was  ordered. 
We  hardly  knew  what  we  were  marching  out  of 
camp  for,  and  some  thought  it  was  toward 
Manassas  and  the  enemy ;  but  when  we  reached 
our  allotted  position  in  line  the  sight  was  mag 
nificent,  indeed.  More  than  one  hundred  and 
fifty  regiments  of  infantry  in  close  column  by 
division,  with  cavalry  and  artillery  in  propor 
tion,  made  a  military  spectacle  never  witnessed 


36  FOLLOWING   THE   GREEK   CROSS. 

on  this  continent,  and  rarely  on  any  other.  The 
regiments  were  full  in  numbers,  the  cloth 
ing  and  accoutrements  new,  and  the  foreign 
officers  present,  of  whom  a  score  glittering  with 
decorations  ornamented  McClellan's  staff,  must 
have  been  impressed  with  the  power  and  glory 
of  the  Republic.  It  took  hours  for  the  whole 
column  to  pass  the  reviewing  stand,  but  in  time 
we  got  back  to  camp,  tired,  thirsty,  and  hungry, 
though  somewhat  in  excitement  still,  for  we  con 
sidered  the  review  the  presage  of  an  early 
campaign. 

The  clamor  of  "  On  to  Richmond  "  filled  the 
Northern  papers,  and  as  they  had  no  experi 
ence  of  Virginia  mud  it  did  not  surprise  us. 

About  the  eleventh  of  March,  we  broke  up 
our  winter  quarters,  marched  toward  the 
enemy  at  Manassas,  and  spent  the  night  in 
bivouac,  —  our  first  experience.  I  quote  from  a 
letter  written  at  the  time  :  "  We  have  no  bag 
gage  with  us  but  our  blankets.  I  enjoy  this 
kind  of  life  immensely.  We  expect  to  be  in 
Richmond  in  a  fortnight."  We  got  there  in  a 
little  over  four  years,  but  our  hopefulness  was 
pleasant  just  the  same.  Finding  the  enemy 
had  evacuated  Manassas,  we  turned  toward 
Alexandria,  making  a  twenty-mile  inarch,  which 
was  a  big  one  for  new  and  untried  troops,  es 
pecially  as  it  rained  all  the  way.  We  had  to 


OFF  FOR  FORTRESS  MONROE.  37 

sleep  in  the  rain,  without  shelter,  that  night  for 
the  first  time,  and  old  soldiers  will  all  remember 
the  experience  of  waking  up  stiff  and  sore  so 
often  in  the  night  and  getting  warm  by  the  fire, 
and  lying  down  to  try  it  once  more.  To  this 
day  I  cannot  smell  a  fire  in  the  woods  without 
being  taken  back  in  imagination  to  Virginia 
again. 

We  camped  some  days  near  Alexandria  wait 
ing  our  time  to  embark  for  the  Peninsula, 
drilling  as  much  as  possible  by  day  and  study 
ing  by  candle  light  evenings.  At  that  time  I 
copied  all  the  drawings  in  Mahan's  "  Field  Forti 
fication,"  and  almost  learned  the  book  by  heart, 
which  I  found  very  useful  afterward,  for  there 
is  a  right  way  to  dig  even  a  rifle  pit. 

We  embarked,  March  23,  on  the  steamer 
Long  Branch  for  Fortress  Monroe.  That  night 
Nickerson  sang  in  his  clear  tenor  "The  Yel 
low  Girl  Dressed  in  Blue,"  Dr.  Forbes,  "  The 
Cottage  by  the  Sea "  and  other  choice  dit 
ties,  and  Channing  was  as  full  of  humor  and 
mimicry  as  he  was  afterward  in  many  harder 
places  ;  and  it  waxed  late  before  we  sought  our 
hard  couches.  The  next  morning  we  were 
steaming  through  the  great  fleet  of  transports 
gathered  at  Old  Point  Comfort,  gazing  with 
excited  interest  on  the  already  historic  Moni 
tor.  Our  arms  were  soon  stacked  on  the  beach, 


38  FOLLOWING   THE   GREEK  CROSS. 

and  while  many  were  tumbling  in  the  sad  sea 
waves  some  of  us  made  a  reconnoissance  of  the 
Hygeia  Hotel ;  which  was  not  the  vast  and 
stately  pile  now  frequented  by  hundreds  of 
guests,  but  a  low  and  squalid  hostelry  that  could 
offer  no  refreshment  for  man  or  beast.  The 
poorest  sutler's  store  in  the  Grand  Army  had 
better  fare. 

That  night  the  dome  of  the  Chesapeake  Fe 
male  College  shone  in  the  moonlight  some  three 
miles  away.  Certain  associations  made  it  a 
kind  of  shrine  for  me,  as  it  had  sheltered  the 
previous  winter  one  who  has  brightened  my  life 
for  more  than  twenty-five  years.  So,  after  a 
smart  gallop  through  the  recently  destroyed 
village  of  Hampton,  out  into  what  seemed  to  be 
the  enemy's  country,  I  came  to  the  then  de 
serted  college,  which  is  now  the  National  Sol 
diers'  Home.  The  young  ladies  had  evidently 
left  in  haste,  for  many  of  their  belongings  were 
scattered  about.  The  waters  of  the  bay  were 
glittering;  off  toward  the  enemy  all  looked 
misty,  dark,  and  uncertain  ;  home  seemed  very 
far  away,  and  the  realization  of  the  serious 
ness  of  war  would  obtrude  itself,  though  the 
charm  of  the  night  soon  brought  content  after 
sadness. 

"  Let  fate  do  her  worst,  there  are  relics  of  joy, 
Bright  dreams  of  the  past,  which  she  cannot  destroy." 


A  NIGHT  ALARM.  39 

Our  brigade  was  soon  sent  on  to  Newport 
News  and  then  forward  again,  till  we  were  in 
the  extreme  advance,  and  I  had  the  picket  the 
first  night.  As  the  enemy  was  said  to  be  im 
mediately  in  front  in  great  numbers,  I  fortified 
a  house  and  put  a  strong  guard  on  the  main 
road.  In  those  days  the  enemy  were  always 
said  to  be  in  front  in  great  force,  and  unfortu 
nately  headquarters  were  always  believing  it  as 
well  as  we  subordinates.  If  we  could  have  had 
such  a  secret  service  as  Sheridan  afterward  or 
ganized,  there  would  have  been  no  siege  of 
Yorktown. 

About  midnight,  while  I  was  over  toward  the 
right  of  the  line,  a  sharp  musketry  fire  broke 
out  on  the  road  and  lasted  some  minutes  till  I 
got  there,  when  the  men  reported  that  the 
enemy  were  advancing  up  the  road  upon  them. 
As  I  had  not  noticed  any  flashes  from  that  side, 
I  went  down  the  road  and  discovered  an  old 
horse  and  two  cows  killed  in  action.  The  cows 
were  soon  broiling  on  the  fire  of  the  picket  re 
serve,  and  the  regiment  whose  men  did  the  kill 
ing  were  chaffed  for  many  days.  These  men 
were  zealous  and  even  enthusiastic,  but  they 
were  nervous  and  untried.  Not  long  after, 
they  and  their  opponents  made,  I  believe,  the 
best  pickets  and  skirmishers  too,  the  armies  of 
the  world  have  ever  furnished,  because  they 


40  FOLLOWING   THE   GREEK  CROSS. 

were  not  only  brave,  but  so  many  of  them  were 
highly  intelligent. 

All  I  have  written  heretofore  has  been  of 
playing  at  war,  but  the  real  business  was  now 
about  to  begin.  We  stayed  in  camp  on  the 
James  River  a  few  days,  and  I  remember  seeing 
some  of  our  Maine  hunters  shoot  birds  on  the 
wing  with  a  single  rifle  ball,  little  thinking  how 
the  same  men  would  soon  be  bringing  down 
human  game. 

The  advance  to  Yorktown  in  two  columns  be 
gan  ;  Keyes  on  the  left,  Porter  on  the  right,  and 
the  7th  Maine  as  skirmishers  in  front  of  the  left 
column,  and  as  we  met  the  enemy  first  we  had 
the  first  fighting  of  the  campaign.  The  view  of 
a  major  of  infantry  is  exceedingly  limited,  and  I 
can  only  pretend  to  give  that  view.  I  had 
charge  of  five  companies  on  the  left  of  the  road. 
Our  first  march  was  to  Young's  Mills,  where  we 
found  camps  of  several  thousand  men  recently 
deserted,  but  110  life.  The  next  day,  however, 
after  guiding  my  four  hundred  skirmishers 
fortunately  for  six  or  eight  miles  through  a 
woody  country,  Ay  res' s  battery  following  close 
behind,  we  issued  from  the  woods  and  swamps 
and  came  upon  some  of  the  rebels  —  our  first 
rebels  —  a  few  cavalry  and  infantry  commanded 
by  an  officer  on  a  white  horse,  who  imme 
diately  fired  his  revolver  at  us,  and  then  all 


FIRST   TIME    UNDER  FIRE.  41 

disappearing  like  the  "  shifting  phantasmagoria 
of  a  dream."  Pushing  on  in  great  glee 
because  my  line  was  so  straight,  after  pass 
ing  through  another  belt  of  woods,  we  saw  War 
wick  Creek  with  forts  beyond  and  enough  of  the 
enemy.  The  bullets  were  flying  thick,  but  we 
did  not  quite  realize  what  they  were,  and  the  or 
der  came  to  halt  and  lie  down.  Now  our  brigade 
commander  had  a  scheme  of  his  own  to  com 
municate  with  a  picket  or  a  skirmish  line,  which 
was  to  have  a  string  of  men  extending  back, 
shouting  distance  apart,  to  pass  orders  out  to  the 
line  by  shouting  them  from  one  to  the  other. 
An  order  came  over  this  novel  telegraph  line : 
"  Tell  Major  Hyde  to  go  out  and  draw  the  en 
emy's  fire."  I  did  not  like  this  much,  but  I  had 
to  go,  so  taking  a  few  men  we  crept  out  through 
a  fringe  of  bushes  to  the  overhanging  bank  of 
the  creek,  where  I  climbed  down  to  the  water, 
and,  everything  looking  sheltered  and  peaceful, 
I  was  trying  to  see  if  the  stream  was  fordable, 
when  a  crowd  of  men  appeared  on  the  other 
side  looking  at  me  and  I  at  them,  both  sides 
rather  astonished.  I  suddenly  remembered  that 
I  ought  not  to  be  there  and  plunged  into 
the  bushes,  and  fortunately  ran  the  right  way, 
as  none  of  their  shots  reached  me.  It  after 
wards  turned  out  that  the  general  had  sent  an 
order  "to  cease  firing,"  or  something  like  it, 


42  FOLLOWING  THE   GREEK   CROSS. 

which  was  mangled  in  transmission.  So  after  he 
learned  it  he  never  used  that  telegraph  line 
again.  Well,  I  had  seen  the  foe  face  to  face, 
near  enough  to  count  his  buttons,  and  I  had 
seen  enough  to  satisfy  my  youthful  intelligence 
that  there  were  not  many  people  over  there, 
and  that  our  skirmish  line  could  take  it  as  well 
as  not.  So  I  begged  for  permission  to  advance, 
but  it  was  not  allowed.  Had  we  all  known  that 
the  place  was  Lee's  Mills  and  the  key  of  the 
Yorktown  line,  we  should  have  been  tempted  to 
go  over  any  way  and  save  the  weary  days  of  the 
siege  of  Yorktown. 

I  saw  my  first  man  killed  that  day  —  a  shell 
cut  him  in  two.  I  think  he  was  the  first  man 
killed  in  the  Army  of  the  Potomac,  Joe  Pepper, 
of  Bath.  He  used  to  work  for  us  at  home,  and 
when  I  went  out  to  help  bury  him  that  night  and 
took  his  wife's  picture  from  his  bloody  pocket, 
for  a  moment  I  would  have  given  all  I  had  in 
the  world  to  get  out  of  the  army  ;  the  horror  of 
it  was  so  cruel. 


CHAPTER  VII. 

"  Well,  heaven  forgive  him ;  and  forgive  us  all ! 
Some  rise  by  sin,  and  some  by  virtue  fall : 
Some  run  from  brakes  of  vice,  and  answer  none  ; 
And  some  condemned  for  a  fault  alone." 

Measure  for  Measure. 

WE  had  been  under  fire  for  a  dozen  hours. 
We  were  green  troops  no  more  and  we  fancied 
ourselves  veterans.  Our  pride  disdained  the  wet, 
the  chilliness,  the  mud,  all  the  detriments  of  Vir 
ginia.  We  were  soldiers  now.  We  had  had  our 
baptism  of  fire  and  we  had  borne  it  well,  at  least 
we  thought  so,  and  pride  in  our  glorious  profes 
sion  swelled  our  hearts  and  made  even  the  slow 
falling  rain  and  the  sodden  ground  seem  to  sing 
and  to  resound  with  our  elation.  They  brought 
up  hard-tack,  it  tasted  sweet ;  the  cold  coffee  in 
large  tins  seemed  nectar,  and  the  only  drawback 
was  that  we  had  neither  pen  nor  paper  to  chron 
icle  our  doings  for  the  people  at  home.  They 
were  the  chorus  to  this  bloody  drama.  "  What 
will  they  say  at  home  ?  "  was  to  us  as  "  What  will 
they  say  in  England  ?  "  to  Wellington's  battal 
ions  lying  behind  the  wheat-clad  slopes  of  Wa 
terloo.  To  deserve  well  of  one's  country  is  what 


44  FOLLOWING    THE    GREEK   CROSS. 

the  soldier  pines  for,  and  it  sweetens  his  sorry 
lot. 

We  were  drawn  back  a  little  that  stormy 
night  and  lay  where  we  could  in  the  mud  and 
wet ;  but  our  hearts  were  warm,  or  we  might 
have  perished  as  the  storm  increased.  The  heav 
ens  seemed  to  open  and  the  Virginia  rain  came 
down  in  sheets  upon  us  not  yet  accustomed  to  its 
fury. 

In  the  morning  shells  began  gently  dropping 
among  us,  and  made  a  dull  day  gently  exciting. 
We  learned  their  weird  whistle,  a  sound  we  be 
came  better  educated  to  on  many  fields  from 
Gettysburg  to  the  Appomattox,  but  I  do  not 
think  it  became  pleasanter  as  months  rolled  on. 
However,  we  could  soon  distinguish  the  danger 
ous  shot  from  the  ordinary,  and  the  futility  of 
dodging  became  more  apparent.  At  last  we  were 
put  back  into  a  camp  that  was  almost  Venetian 
from  its  water  courses,  and  I  was  sent  with  a 
Maine  detail  to  cut  and  corduroy  a  road  to  the 
rear.  In  about  a  day  we  cut  nearly  a  mile 
through  the  primeval  forest,  sending  drives  of 
fifty  trees  down  at  once,  men  of  all  States  ga 
thering  in  wonder  to  see  it  done  ;  but  these  were 
the  hardy  lumbermen  from  Northern  Maine  who 
made  a  pastime  of  felling  trees  even  like  Glad 
stone. 

The  next  day  whistling  bullets  through    our 


A  PICKET  FIGHT.  45 

camp  sent  us  to  the  front  to  see  a  handsome  re 
pulse  of  the  enemy  by  Captain  George  Morse, 
commanding  our  picket.  On  their  attack,  the 
outlying  picket  ran  in,  and  Morse  promptly  or 
dered  the  reserve  to  charge.  The  consequence 
was  dispersion  of  the  attack,  a  prisoner  or  two, 
and  rejoicing  on  our  side,  tempered  with  sadness  ; 
for  my  friend  George  O.  McLellan  had  fallen 
with  a  mortal  wound,  but  from  where  he  lay 
wounded  he  sent  shot  after  shot  from  his  rifle 
into  the  flying  enemy.  He  was  only  a  sergeant 
in  the  7th  Maine,  but  to  the  end  of  the  war  I 
thought  that  a  proud  position. 

One  day  I  was  ordered  with  three  companies 
to  feel  the  enemy  in  front  and  ascertain  his  line. 
We  pushed  out  through  the  beautiful  woods  for 
a  while  and  they  seemed  as  peaceful  as  a  beauti 
ful  dream ;  but  suddenly  a  man  in  front  of  me 
jumped  and  fell  prostrate,  and  the  sound  of  the 
ball  striking  him  was  like  a  sledge  on  wood. 
But  "  Forward,  boys,  it  is  safer  there  !  "  and  soon 
we  came  out  in  front  of  their  works,  and  their 
cannon  belched  out  over  where  we  hugged  the 
ground  closely,  while  I  made  a  hurried  sketch 
of  the  line.  On  my  return,  I  reported  to  Major- 
General  Sumner,  commanding  the  left  wing  of 
the  army,  and  gave  him  my  drawing.  The  bluff 
and  gray  old  officer  looked  at  me  and  seemed  to 
look  me  through  and  through,  but  my  blue  over- 


46  FOLLOWING   THE    GREEK  CROSS. 

coat  gave  no  signs  of  rank.  "  You  a  major  !  " 
said  he.  "  My  God  !  sir,  you  will  command  the 
armies  of  the  United  States  at  my  age,  sir."  It 
always  puzzled  the  old  regulars  to  see  us  juveniles 
playing  soldier,  as  it  may  have  seemed  to  them. 
Night  after  night  of  picket,  night  after  night  of 
sore  trial,  seems  now  the  epitome  of  the  siege  of 
Yorktown.  Once  we  rode  over  to  the  right  to 
see  the  grandeur  of  the  siege  that  McClellan  was 
modeling  on  that  of  Sevastopol.  And  he  was 
doing  it  in  great  shape,  unaware  that  if  he  would 
tell  us  on  the  left  to  go  ahead  we  could  soon 
flank  the  rebels  out  of  their  holes. 

It  always  seemed  to  me  that  McClellan,  though 
no  commander  ever  had  the  love  of  his  soldiers 
more  or  tried  more  to  spare  their  lives,  never 
realized  the  metal  that  was  in  his  Grand  Army 
of  the  Potomac.  We  were  never  "  put  in  "  ex 
cept  in  detail,  and  no  troops  before  or  since,  I 
believe,  would  better  have  justified  "putting 
in."  He  was  troubling  his  patriotic  and  gallant 
heart  about  the  troops  that  had  been  taken  from 
him,  and  never  appreciated  until  too  late  what 
manner  of  people  he  had  with  him ;  no  better 
than  other  people,  perhaps,  but  ignorant  of  dan 
ger,  zealous  for  our  cause,  with  health  yet  un 
touched  by  the  miasma  of  the  Chickahominy. 
Not  long  afterward,  twenty  thousand  of  these 
troops,  under  Porter,  stood  off  Hill,  Long-street, 


ESTIMATE   OF  MC  CLELLAN.  47 

and  Jackson,  with  sixty  thousand  men,  from  noon 
till  the  going  down  of  the  sun.  And  what  might 
they  not  have  accomplished  on  a  direct  assault ! 
We  would  not  have  enjoyed  assaulting  the  works 
at  Yorktown  proper,  but  on  a  twenty-mile  line 
there  were  lots  of  other  places  to  put  us  in. 

But  McClellan  after  all  was  in  some  sense  an 
exponent  of  his  army.  We  thought  he  did  all 
things  well,  and  so  did  he.  How  Magruder  and 
Johnston  and  the  rest  must  have  chuckled  at 
our  slow  movements,  but  if  any  one  had  hinted 
to  us  we  were  slow  it  would  have  been  "  pistols 
and  coffee  "  at  once.  Still  the  grand  man  of  the 
age  was  fretting  his  heart  out  at  Washington 
over  our  barren  bulletins  of  victory,  and  divining 
with  his  marvelous  common  sense  how  things 
were  with  us,  even  while  his  blind  advisers 
caused  him  to  take  away  division  after  division 
of  the  men  we  needed.  We  would  have  needed 
them  even  more  had  the  muster  rolls  of  the 
Confederates  equaled  the  reports  of  McClellan's 
scouts.  These  reports  were  the  principal  cause 
of  the  failure  of  as  pure  a  man  and  as  popular  a 
soldier  as  the  century  had  seen. 


CHAPTER   VIII. 

"  Now  's  the  day  and  now  's  the  hour, 
See  the  front  o'  battle  lour." 

BURNS. 

WHILE  we  had  been  waiting  orders  to  form 
columns  of  assault,  and  recalling  all  the  thrilling 
stories  we  had  read  of  forlorn  hopes  from  Charles 
O'Malley  in  the  breach  at  Ciudad  Eodrigo  to 
the  storming  of  Molino  del  Rey,  the  day  passed 
on  with  little  change  in  our  surroundings.  We 
heard  sometimes  heavy  guns  on  the  right.  We 
saw  the  swamps  become  a  little  less  flooded,  and 
at  times  it  did  not  rain.  Late  one  night  our 
orders  came  and  little  sleep  followed  them,  but 
in  the  early  morning  there  was  an  unwonted 
stillness  as  the  long  regiments  filed  out  of  camp, 
and  very  soon  we  were  told  that  the  enemy  had 
departed.  As  we  wended  our  way  through  their 
deserted  camps,  there  was  an  occasional  explo 
sion.  We  were  warned  to  look  out  for  torpedoes, 
and  we  soon  passed  some  deftly  planted  for  our 
undoing,  and  it  seemed  an  unkindness  on  the 
part  of  our  misguided  fellow-countrymen.  We 
had  not  had  the  time  to  get  up  much  of  a  feel 
ing  of  hostility  to  them  as  yet.  We  pushed 


MOVE   ON   WILLIAMSBURG.  49 

on  in  pursuit  over  fairly  good  roads,  and  were 
considerably  delayed  by  Sumner's  column  cross 
ing  our  path.  Distant  firing  was  heard  at  inter 
vals  in  front  from  the  cavalry  and  horse  artillery, 
and  crowds  of  contrabands  passed  to  our  rear, 
looking  like  so  many  old  clothes-bags,  but  in 
great  joy,  as  they  believed  the  millennium  had 
come. 

We  lay  that  night  in  a  potato  field,  having 
soft  but  wet  beds  between  the  hills,  and  as  it 
rained  in  the  night  they  were  softer  and  wetter 
by  morning.  About  noon  the  next  day,  while 
Hooker's  and  Kearny's  divisions  were  fighting 
in  the  woods  in  front,  six  regiments  of  us,  under 
command  of  General  Hancock,  moved  off  to  the 
right  some  miles  till  we  were  in  sight  of  the 
York  River,  then  turned  toward  the  town  of 
Williamsburg,  and  came  to  a  milldam  with  a  fort 
on  the  steep  hill  on  the  other  side  of  it,  which, 
fortunately  for  us,  proved  to  be  unoccupied. 
We  pushed  on  across  the  dam,  and,  on  gaining 
the  hill,  saw  in  front  of  us  a  chain  of  forts  and 
the  smoke  of  Hooker's  fight  in  a  direction  that 
proved  to  the  least  experienced  that  we  were 
moving  straight  on  the  enemy's  left  flank.  As 
the  ground  became  more  open,  and  we  got  into 
line  of  battle,  we  could  see  how  few  we  were, 
and  the  danger  of  being  cut  off  appeared  immi 
nent,  as  the  woods  on  our  right  were  very  dense. 


50  FOLLOWING   THE   GREEK   CROSS. 

Now,  it  is  not  my  purpose  to  give  otlier  than 
my  personal  impressions,  which  are  now  dimmed 
by  the  lapse  of  thirty  years,  and  I  will  not  un 
dertake  to  give  a  detailed  description  of  the  bat 
tle  of  Williamsburg.  I  was  at  first  sent  out 
with  some  skirmishers  into  the  woods  on  our 
right,  and  I  went  beyond  the  men  to  see  if  there 
was  any  one  there.  The  day  was  overcast,  the 
woods  were  wild  and  tangled,  and  it  was  rather 
gruesome  looking  from  tree  to  tree  to  see  if  a 
foe  lurked  behind.  Coming  back  I  was  fired  on 
by  our  own  men,  very  properly,  as  I  came  from 
the  wrong  direction.  Returning  to  the  regiment 
which  was  lying  down  in  line  in  open  field,  I 
could  see  in  front  the  5th  Wisconsin  and  6th 
Maine  skirmishing  with  the  rebels,  and  Wheel 
er's  battery  firing  for  all  it  was  worth  upon  some 
redoubts,  and  soon  from  beyond  Fort  Magruder 
some  three  or  four  thousand  of  the  enemy  ap 
peared.  I  did  not  then  know  that  the  general 
with  his  staff  so  clearly  seen  with  them  was  Ju- 
bal  A.  Early,  called  the  late  Mr.  Early  at  West 
Point,  who  once  came  so  near  taking  Washing 
ton,  who  was  afterward  so  unmercifully  beaten 
in  the  Shenandoah  Valley  by  Sheridan,  and  who 
is  said  to  be  still  an  unrepentant  rebel.  Our 
advance  regiments  fell  back  by  General  Han 
cock's  order ;  on  the  Confederates  came,  and  a 
fine  picture  of  a  charge  they  made.  They  were 


HANCOCK'S  BAYONET  CHARGE.      51 

at  the  double-quick,  and  were  coming  over  a 
ploughed  field,  diagonally  across  our  front,  to 
attack  the  troops  that  were  retiring.  They 
could  not  see  us  as  we  lay  flat  on  the  ground. 
From  my  place  on  the  left  of  the  regiment,  I 
saw  General  Hancock  galloping  toward  us,  bare 
headed,  alone,  a  magnificent  figure ;  and  with  a 
voice  hoarse  with  shouting  he  gave  us  the  order, 
"  Forward  !  charge  !  "  The  papers  had  it  that 
he  said,  "Charge,  gentlemen,  charge,"  but  he 
was  more  emphatic  than  that :  the  air  was  blue 
all  around  him.  Well,  up  we  started,  and  the 
long  line  of  sabre  bayonets  came  down  together 
as  if  one  man  swayed  them  as  we  crossed  the 
crest,  and  with  a  roar  of  cheers  the  7th  Maine 
dashed  on.  It  was  an  ecstasy  of  excitement  for 
a  moment;  but  the  foe,  breathless  from  their 
long  tug  over  the  heavy  ground,  seemed  to  dis 
solve  all  at  once  into  a  quivering  and  disinte 
grating  mass  and  to  scatter  in  all  directions. 
Upon  this  we  halted  and  opened  fire,  and  the 
view  of  it  through  the  smoke  was  pitiful.  They 
were  falling  everywhere;  white  handkerchiefs 
were  held  up  in  token  of  surrender ;  no  bullets 
were  coming  our  way  except  from  a  clump  of  a 
few  trees  in  front  of  our  left.  Here  a  group  of 
men,  led  by  an  officer  whose  horse  had  just  fallen, 
were  trying  to  keep  up  the  unequal  fight,  when 
McK.,  the  crack  shot  of  Company  D,  ran  for- 


52  FOLLOWING   THE   GREEK   CROSS. 

ward  a  little  and  sent  a  bullet  crashing  through 
his  brain.  This  was  Lieutenant-Colonel  J.  C. 
Bradburn  of  the  5th  North  Carolina,  and  at  his 
fall  all  opposition  ceased.  We  gathered  in  some 
three  hundred  prisoners  before  dark.  Then  the 
rain  came,  and  though  there  is  nothing  specially 
remarkable  about  that,  for  it  was  always  com 
ing  down,  yet  it  made  much  difference  with  our 
comfort,  and  it  is  one  of  the  trivial  facts  that 
will  insist  on  being  remembered. 

I  went  over  the  field  and  tried  to  harden  my 
self  to  the  sights  of  horror  and  agony.  One 
gets  accustomed  to  such  things,  just  as  doctors 
get  accustomed  to  the  dissecting  table,  but  at 
this  early  day  we  were  not  much  hardened.  As 
it  became  dark  we  spread  a  lot  of  fence  rails  in 
the  mud  and  sat  on  cracker  boxes  in  our  rub 
ber  blankets  most  of  the  night,  for,  between  the 
excitement  and  the  rain  and  the  occasional  shots 
of  our  picket  just  in  front,  we  had  no  desire  for 
sleep.  Connor  told  stories  and  recited  poetry, 
and  we  reiterated  to  each  other  our  experiences 
of  the  battle  with  an  enthusiasm  that  could  not 
be  quenched.  Nor  were  the  men  much  more 
sleepy.  Beside  their  dim  watch-fires  murmurs 
of  hushed  conversation  arose,  and  the  phospho 
rescent  glow  on  the  faces  of  the  dead  in  the 
fields  beyond  became  more  weird  as  the  night 
sped  on.  Distant  noises  would  have  told  older 


MCCLELLAND  SPEECH.  53 

soldiers  that  the  enemy  was  in  retreat  in  the 
black  darkness  off  toward  Williamsburg,  but  we 
expected  to  attack  Fort  Magruder  in  the  morn 
ing. 

Our  part  of  the  battle  was  the  beginning  of 
Hancock's  fame,  and  he  always  had  a  lively 
affection  for  the  regiments  who  were  in  the 
"  bayonet  charge  at  Williamsburg." 

The  next  day  we  did  not  move  out  of  this 
rude  bivouac.  I  went  to  see  the  doctors  operate 
in  a  barn  near  by,  and  they  had  a  pile  of  legs 
and  arms  that  looked  positively  uncanny.  We 
all  wrote  most  exuberant  letters  home,  and  at 
night,  while  at  dress  parade,  a  great  cavalcade 
was  seen  approaching,  General  McClellan  at  the 
head.  He  stopped  before  our  colors,  and  in  a 
graceful  speech  thanked  us  for  the  charge  of 
the  day  before,  which,  he  said,  saved  the  day, 
and  directed  us  to  place  "  Williamsburg  "  upon 
our  flag.  We  broke  out  into  wild  cheering,  and 
no  British  regiments  were  ever  prouder  of  the 
emblazonments  of  Talavera  or  Badajos  than  we, 
so  recently  from  civil  life,  of  the  honors  of  our 
maiden  field. 


CHAPTER  IX. 

"  Wut  did  God  make  us  raytional  creeturs  fer, 
But  glory  and  gunpowder,  plunder  and  blood." 

Biglow  Papers. 

OUR  marches  were  short  and  slow  from  Wil- 
liamsburg  to  the  vicinage  of  Richmond.  Going 
through  that  ancient  burgh  where  was  the  Col 
lege  of  William  and  Mary,  and  where  all  the 
girls  were  patriotically  clustering  about  the  Con 
federate  hospitals,  we  seemed  a  while  in  the 
world  of  Thackeray's  Virginians,  and  almost  ex 
pected  to  see  the  coach  of  Madame  Esmond. 

The  next  night  the  moon  shone  clear  upon 
our  picket  lines,  and  upon  the  roofs  of  a  stately 
mansion  far  in  front.  A  spirit  of  adventure  led 
Connor  and  me  to  slip  through  our  guards  and 
ride  a  few  miles  out  into  the  rebel  land,  in  the 
belief  that  if  there,  the  enemy  must  be  asleep. 
We  rode  up  the  long  avenue  of  elms,  up  to  the 
ancient  and  hospitable  looking  veranda,  and, 
leaving  our  horses  in  charge  of  an  orderly,  began 
to  explore  the  premises.  Doors  and  windows 
were  wide  open.  Half-packed  trunks  were  ly 
ing  about,  and  all  tokens  bore  witness  to  the 
hurried  flight  of  the  family.  We  lighted  can- 


/AT  THE  ENEMY'S   COUNTRY.  55 

dies  and  explored  the  grand  old  rooms,  looking 
at  ourselves  in  the  ancient  pier  glasses,  and 
made  acquaintance,  in  its  sadness  and  desolation, 
of  a  Virginia  homestead  of  the  olden  time  when 
the  county  families  vied  with  the  nobility  of  the 
England  from  whence  they  came.  A  trembling- 
black  butler  soon  appeared  and  served  us  old 
Madeira  in  quaint  decanters.  We  sent  his  fel 
low-servants  to  act  as  sentinels  and  warn  us  of 
the  approach  of  the  enemy,  and  made  careful 
exploration  of  the  mansion.  In  the  third  story 
a  distinct  snore  became  audible,  and  when  we 
had  summoned  its  author,  and  fully  expected  to 
bring  in  a  rebel  brigadier-general,  we  found  we 
had  only  waked  a  stray  signal  officer  of  ours  who 
had  lost  his  way  and  put  up  there  for  the  night. 
As  others  less  appreciative  would,  no  doubt,  have 
taken  the  Madeira,  we  loaded  up  our  steeds  with 
it  and  a  memento  or  two.  Mine  was  a  feather 
pillow,  which  luxury  was  soon  after  purloined 
from  me  in  turn.  While  we  were  looking  over 
the  library  of  choice  books,  the  darkies  gave  the 
alarm,  and  we  were  at  once  in  the  saddle  gallop 
ing  across  country  toward  the  distant  haze  that 
concealed  our  faithful  pickets.  Such  little  epi 
sodes  sweetened  the  usual  grind  of  campaigning 
of  which  mud  and  hard-tack,  rain  and  marching, 
were  the  salient  features. 

As  we  drew  nearer  and  nearer  to  Richmond, 


56  FOLLOWING   THE   GREEK   CROSS. 

one  day  we  came  to  a  crossing  where  four  roads 
met.  Above  it  was  a  weather-beaten  and  time- 
worn  sign-board  that  no  doubt  was  doing  duty 
when  Washington  marched  with  Braddock ;  its 
legend  read,  with  hand  pointing  westward,  "  21 
miles  to  Richmond  ;  "  beneath  it  another  was 
nailed  of  the  new  pine  of  a  bread-box,  with  a 
large  hand  pointing  in  the  opposite  direction, 
and  "  647  miles  to  Gorham,  Maine "  showed 
unmistakably  that  some  of  our  fellow-citizens 
had  passed  that  way. 

That  night  we  camped  in  an  immense  wheat 
field  at  the  White  House  on  James  River,  the 
place  where  Washington  was  married.  The 
plain  was  large  enough  for  the  bivouac  of  75,000 
men,  and  as  the  Army  of  the  Potomac  gathered 
in  it  with  wagons  and  artillery  the  sight  soon 
became  grand.  At  this  place  a  French  officer 
whose  acquaintance  I  had  made  came  to  call  on 
me,  but  I  was  off  somewhere,  and  he  asked, 
"  Vere  is  dat  major,  major  —  vat  you  call  him  ? 
Somebody  goes  away,  nobody  can't  find  him ;  " 
and  this  closes  my  associations  with  the  White 
House. 

We  pushed  on  one  or  two  easy  marches 
toward  Richmond  and  the  scene  of  our  next 
fight,  which  I  will  suffer  a  letter  written  home 
at  the  time  to  describe : 

"  Day  before  yesterday  we  received  orders  for 


SKIRMISH  AT  MECIIANICSVILLE.  57 

detached  service,  and  marched  six  miles  on  the 
Richmond  road,  passing  General  Stoneman's 
advance  and  crossing  the  Chickahominy  Swamp 
after  a  short  skirmish.  We  lay  on  our  arms 
that  night,  and  dawn  showed  us  the  village  of 
Mechanicsville  in  the  distance,  where  the  rebels 
were  posted  in  some  force,  and  only  four  miles 
from  Richmond.  General  Davidson  pushed  us 
forward  on  the  left,  and  the  rest  of  the  bri 
gade  on  the  right  of  us  followed  by  Wheeler's 
battery  and  a  squadron  of  cavalry.  The  enemy 
let  us  get  pretty  near  and  then  c  let  fly.'  Their 
first  round  shot  struck  in  a  ditch  we  were  cross 
ing,  and  the  second  seemed  to  knock  Colonel 
Mason,  horse  and  all,  over.  He  lay  in  the 
bushes  very  pale,  and  faintly  said,  '  Take  com 
mand,  Major.'  Connor  was  off  on  picket.  We 
advanced  till  the  general  found  a  good  position 
for  the  battery  to  open,  and  then  he  ordered  us  to 
halt  and  lie  down.  I  put  the  regiment  behind  a 
ridge,  and  soon  Colonel  Connor  came  up  and 
relieved  me.  The  enemy  bringing  up  more  guns 
and  the  fire  from  the  tops  of  the  houses  waxing 
hotter,  General  Davidson  brought  up  two  pieces 
of  horse  artillery,  posted  them  himself  well  up 
to  the  enemy's  battery,  and  threw  us  forward 
to  support  them.  About  this  time  I  was  thrown 
over  by  a  cannon-ball  which  just  grazed  me,  and 
when  I  picked  myself  up  I  saw  how  splendidly 


58  FOLLOWING   THE   GREEK   CROSS. 

our  fire  was  telling.  The  houses  were  riddled, 
chimneys  knocked  down,  and  the  rebels  were 
swarming  from  their  places  of  concealment. 
They  took  themselves  off  so  well  that,  when  our 
line  charged  just  after,  our  prizes  of  victory 
were  only  their  knapsacks  and  many  of  their 
arms.  The  loss  of  the  whole  brigade  was  tri 
fling,  only  about  a  dozen ;  ours,  a  few  flesh 
wounds.  Colonel  Mason  was  insensible  for  some 
time,  but  is  now  all  right.  General  McClellan 
rode  up  shortly  after  and  pronounced  it  a  '  dash 
ing  affair.'  The  forces  opposed  to  us  were  said 
to  be  Howell  Cobb's  Georgia  brigade  and  Dawes's 
Battery. 

"It  is  somewhat  remarkable  that  in  every 
fight  we  have  been  engaged  we  have  been 
drenched  with  rain. 

"We  left  Mechanicsville  that  (last)  night, 
and  to-day  move  further  to  the  left.  We  can 
here  see  the  rebels  quite  plainly  across  the  val 
ley,  and  while  at  supper  they  threw  a  shot  into 
us  which  did  no  harm.  My  tent  is  in  a  straw 
berry  bed  near  a  fine  country  residence,  filled 
with  wounded  rebels.  We  had  strawberries  for 
supper,  and  the  men  have  been  luxuriating  in 
green  peas  and  beans,  gooseberries,  sweet  pota 
toes,  and  'hoe-cake/  I  have  had  to  take  lots 
of  quinine  so  far.  I  suppose  people  think  one 
goes  into  a  fight  as  the  picture-books  have 


NO  MCDOWELL.  59 

it.  I  was  blacked  with  smoke,  my  trousers 
were  all  caked  with  mud,  my  sword  rusty,  and  I 
wet  to  the  skin." 

This  movement  to  Mechanicsville  on  our  right 
was  made  by  McClellan,  hoping  to  hear  Mc 
Dowell's  guns  coming  straight  down  from 
Washington  ;  but  he  never  came. 

I  cannot  remember  a  battle  in  which  it  did 
not  either  rain  or  rain  just  after,  and  we  thought 
it  was  caused  by  "  the  red  artillery." 


CHAPTER  X. 

"  The  rebel  vales,  the  rebel  dales, 
With  rebel  trees  surrounded  ; 
The  distant  woods,  the  hills  and  floods, 
With  rebel  echoes  sounded." 

The  Battle  of  the  Kegs. 

AND  now  I  come  to  speak  of  the  real  fighting 
of  the  Peninsula.  To  my  mind,  nothing  that 
came  after  exceeded  it  in  the  valor  and  tactical 
merit  displayed  or  in  reckless  charges  or  losses 
in  a  given  time.  This  feeling  is  emphasized  as 
I  read  Union  and  Confederate  reports.  The 
splendid,  full,  and  enthusiastic  regiments  of 
those  days  on  both  sides,  the  equality  of  num 
bers,  unless  the  rebels  were  superior,  made  when 
the  armies  joined  in  battle  a  struggle  as  of 
giants.  Their  hearts  were  not  then  so  eaten 
out  by  the  fear  of  death  long  delayed.  The 
best  and  the  bravest  who  were  to  fall  on  so 
many  fields  were  then  with  us.  For  elan,  cour 
age,  hope,  and  pride  in  their  cause,  no  armies 
before  or  since  have  surpassed  the  Grand 
Army  of  McClellan,  and  the  Army  of  Northern 
Virginia. 

After    the   skirmish    at    Mechanicsville    we 


A   GRIM  REBEL.  61 

camped  near  the  Hogan  House  on  the  Chickahom- 
iny,  and  picketed  that  many-coursed  swampy 
stream.  One  day  I  had  command  of  the  divi 
sion  picket,  and,  after  much  fatigue  in  posting 
them  on  hummocks  and  other  dry  points,  I  re 
tired  to  the  piazza  of  the  Gaines  House,  which 
overlooked  the  whole  valley  and  was  a  fine  point 
of  vantage. 

Guards  had  been  placed  over  the  tobacco  and 
the  turkeys,  the  icehouse  and  the  hams  of  the 
grizzly  old  rebel  Gaines,  who  did  not  deign  to 
show  his  head  to  the  Yankee  vandals.  As  I 
had  nothing  whatever  to  do  but  watch  the  birds 
flying  and  listen  to  the  grasshoppers,  and  as  no 
Lalage  was  present  to  draw  even  cold  water 
from  the  sacred  stream  near  by,  I  ventured  to 
knock  at  the  big  front  door,  which  was  opened 
by  the  grim  Gaines  aforesaid. 

Putting  on  my  best  manner  I  requested  the 
loan  of  a  book  from  his  well-stocked  library, 
visible  through  the  window,  with  which  to  be 
guile  my  loneliness.  The  old  man  soon  returned 
with  a  copy  of  the  Patent  Office  Report  of  1856 
and  handed  it  to  me  with  simulated  politeness. 

The  blow  was  a  good  one,  but  what  could  I 
say  ?  —  the  laugh  was  on  me  ;  but  when  the 
picket  at  night  was  relieved,  and  each  man  had 
on  his  back  all  the  poultry  and  tobacco  he  could 
carry,  I  am  ashamed  to  say  I  looked  the  other 


62  FOLLOWING   THE   GREEK  CROSS. 

way,  and  I  think  then  the  laugh  was  on  him. 
The  negroes  said  that  the  week  before  Lee 
and  Johnston  had  dined  with  the  old  gentleman, 
and  we  found  he  was  a  very  big  swell  in  Confed 
erate  circles. 

The  next  time  I  went  out  there  on  picket,  a 
yellow-haired  lieutenant  of  cavalry  came  along 
and  said  he  belonged  to  McClellan's  staff,  and 
wanted  to  explore  the  stream  on  our  front.  He 
asked  me  for  some  men  to  support  him.  I  gave 
him  a  company  under  Lieutenant  Nickerson, 
and  soon  the  cracking  of  rifles  through  the  green 
everglades  told  us  anxious  watchers  that  Custer 
was  having  his  first  skirmish. 

From  the  Chickahommy  to  the  Little  Rose 
bud  this  daring  soldier  illustrated  Anglo-Saxon 
courage,  and  when  he  lay  with  all  his  regiment 
around  him  in  their  eternal  bivouac  a  chill 
struck  to  the  hearts  of  every  survivor  of  the 
Army  of  the  Potomac. 

The  last  time  I  saw  him,  a  day  or  two  before 
Appomattox,  he  was  galloping  to  the  front  at  the 
head  of  three  thousand  troopers,  his  yellow  locks 
and  red  silk  tie  streaming  in  the  wind,  and  a  vel 
vet  jacket  slashed  with  gold  covered  the  gallant 
heart  of  the  Murat  of  the  Yankee  cavalry. 

Our  part  of  Fair  Oaks  was  to  wait  in  col 
umn  for  hours  for  a  faint  chance  to  cross 
the  bridges  over  the  Chickahominy,  to  watch 


FAIR  OAKS.  63 

the  cloud-burst  of  shells  far  on  the  other  side, 
and  to  listen  to  the  roars  of  musketry  that 
sounded  like  the  constant  dashing  of  angry  seas 
upon  a  rock-bound  coast.  The  night  before,  I 
was  again  on  picket,  and  about  midnight  found 
my  advanced  posts  were  knee  deep  in  water. 
The  stream  was  rising.  I  ran  my  horse  to  Gen 
eral  Smith's  headquarters,  woke  him,  and  told 
the  tale.  The  division  was  to  march  at  day 
break  anyway,  but  out  they  came,  and  vainly 
tried  the  passage.  The  whole  valley  was  inun 
dated,  trees  were  sweeping  down  with  the  flood, 
the  frail  bridges  in  our  front  were  useless  ;  and 
so  we  missed  taking  a  part  at  Fair  Oaks,  a  most 
sanguinary  and  drawn  battle.  Sumner,  farther 
to  the  left,  had  got  over,  for  Sedgwick's  iron 
nerve  had  pushed  his  division  through  all  obsta 
cles,  and  over  better  bridges,  and  hurled  them  in 
in  time  to  save  the  fortunes  of  the  day.  Here 
the  3d  Maine,  with  two  full  Bath  companies, 
greatly  distinguished  themselves.  General 
Howard  lost  his  arm,  and  Adjutant-General  Ed 
win  Smith  of  Wiscasset,  than  whom  no  braver 
spirit  was  on  the  Peninsula,  gave  up  his  life 
among  the  plaudits  of  all  Kearny's  gallant  di 
vision. 

Inaction  succeeded  Fair  Oaks,  hot  weather, 
poor  food,  poorer  water,  no  vegetables,  all  hands 
in  line  an  hour  before  daybreak,  the  ration 


64  FOLLOWING   THE  GREEK  CROSS. 

of  whiskey  poured  around  in  big  tin  pails,  and 
quinine  a  necessity  of  life. 

One  day  a  regular  officer,  a  friend  of  Colonel 
Mason,  came  to  call.  He  was  just  from  home, 
and  if  there  was  a  "  400  "  then,  he  probably  be 
longed  to  it.  We  asked  him  to  dinner,  and  to 
our  horror  the  only  dish,  which  was  boiled  rice, 
was  burned.  Of  course  we  laughed,  but  it  was 
really  no  laughing  matter,  for  we  were  hungry ; 
as  indeed  we  were  always. 

Here  I  had  my  only  illness  during  the  war, 
and  it  came  about  in  this  wise.  In  an  evil  day, 
I  gave  five  dollars  for  a  jar  of  sutler's  stuff  all 
covered  with  yellow  and  green  labels.  I  can 
see  it  now  with  a  shudder.  Soon  after  re^al- 

O 

ing  myself  and  friends,  I  was  traveling  to  the 
rear  in  an  ambulance,  my  faithful  Sam  riding 
behind.  He  got  me  to  bed  somewhere  near 
Savage  Station  in  a  field  hospital,  where  my  ill 
ness  was  pronounced  an  attack  of  chills  and 
fever.  After  a  few  hours  the  cannon  began 
to  boom  in  the  direction  of  our  camp.  I  bore 
it  a  while,  but  could  not  stand  it  long ;  was 
helped  on  my  horse,  and  before  I  got  to  camp 
again,  where  the  cannonade  of  Golding's  was 
going  on,  I  was  well,  and  in  my  right  mind. 
Now  this  was  not  from  any  special  anxiety  to 
get  into  the  fight,  for  I  do  not  think  we  had  that 
very  much,  but  the  longing  to  be  with  the  other 


"SCARED   IN  EVERY  FIGHT."  65 

fellows  came  over  one  like  a  kind  of  fascination  ; 
it  resembled  snake  charming,  when  they  were  in 
it  and  we  were  not.  I  must  say,  however,  that  this 
desire  weakened  as  the  years  went  on.  Though 
I  was  badly  scared  in  every  fight,  I  think  it 
grew  on  me,  and  I  was  more  scared  in  the  last 
fight  than  in  any  other. 

I  heard  a  distinguished  speaker  say  lately  that 
he  always  dreaded  going  on  the  platform,  and  that 

Senator ,  one  of   our  greatest   orators,  had 

told  him  he  had  never  got  over  his  fear  of  an 
audience.  So  it  was  in  going  into  action ;  but 
as  in  the  speaker's  case,  after  he  became  warmed 
up  the  feeling  of  fear  passed  away,  so,  with  the 
soldier :  if  he  was  busy  after  he  got  in,  his  mili 
tary  stage  fright  soon  left  him. 


CHAPTER  XL 

"  Once  more  unto  the  breach,  dear  friends,  once  more.'* 

King  Henry  V. 

OUR  army  was  at  this  time  straddling  the 
Chickahominy ;  Porter's  5th  corps,  of  twenty 
thousand  men,  was  alone  upon  the  right  bank, 
and  our  (Smith's)  division  came  next  upon  the 
other  bank.  Lee  sent  Stuart's  Cavalry  around 
our  right,  demonstrating  that  our  weak  point 
was  there.  Then  he  prepared  to  deliver  the 
blow  that  at  once  established  his  reputation  as 
a  great  soldier.  Bringing  Jackson  from  the 
valley,  he  ordered  an  attack  with  three  of  his 
great  corps  upon  our  exposed  right,  commanding 
in  person  himself. 

All  the  afternoon  (June  26,  1862)  we  heard 
heavy  cannonading  in  the  direction  of  our  right 
and  front,  and  as  it  grew  dark  could  see  the 
quick  flashes  of  the  guns,  and  later,  in  the  in 
creased  quiet,  the  low  surging  sound  of  distant 
musketry.  It  would  be  hard  to  realize  the 
anxiety  one  feels  in  listening  to  a  fight  one 
cannot  engage  in.  We  knew  that  McCall  was 
at  them,  but  with  what  result?  At  length  an 


LEE  REPULSED.  67 

orderly  came  dashing  along  with  the  glad  in 
telligence  that  we  had  whipped  the  enemy  com 
manded  by  Lee  in  person.  Wild  cheering  broke 
forth ;  our  bands  performed*  for  the  first  time 
since  Williamsburg.  That  night  a  redoubt  was 
built  on  our  picket  line  and  a  skirt  of  woods 
cut  down  which  unveiled  our  camps  to  the  guns 
of  the  rebels.  At  dawn  the  firing  opened  fiercely, 
but  more  to  our  right.  Could  the  enemy  have 
beaten  us?  We  saw  fires  and  heard  heavy 
explosions  in  the  direction  of  Porter's  camps, 
and  soon  column  after  column  appeared  on  the 
flats  across  the  Chickahominy  above  us,  and  our 
glasses  soon  recognized  the  dirty  gray  uniforms. 
Now  our  brigade  was  ordered  to  form  on  the 
picket  line,  and  they  soon  opened  on  us  with 
several  batteries.  We  lay  as  flat  as  possible, 
and  could  see  Ayres  bring  up  the  division  artil 
lery  and  spiritedly  reply.  Then  a  Connecticut 
battery  of  heavy  guns  opened,  and  after  an 
hour's  firing  the  rebel  batteries  were  silenced. 
In  the  intervals  of  our  own  deafening  fire  we 
could  hear  the  cannonading  going  on  with  un- 
intermitted  fury  on  our  right,  and  still  the 
heavy  gray  columns  were  pouring  in  upon 
Porter.  We  all  felt  that  we  ought  to  attack 
to  make  a  diversion,  though  we  did  not  know 
that  the  5th  corps  alone  were  still  gallantly 
standing  off  the  assault  of  sixty  thousand  men  ; 


68  FOLLOWING   THE  GREEK  CROSS. 

and  they  did  it  all  that  day  until  nearly  sun 
down.  The  other  division  of  our  corps  (Slo- 
cum's)  was  sent  to  Porter's  assistance  toward 
night,  and  we  were  relieved  and  ordered  to 
follow  Slocum.  As  our  brigade  line  was  form 
ing,  the  enemy,  seeing  a  movement  of  troops, 
opened  suddenly  with  three  batteries  directly 
upon  us.  Our  people  came  up  firmly  into  line, 
but  the  New  York  20th  (German)  went  to 
pieces  as  the  first  shot  struck  among  them  just  as 
if  they  were  made  of  glass.  We  had  difficulty 
in  preventing  them  from  breaking  us  as  they 
swept  off  into  the  woods  beyond.  The  air 
seemed  filled  with  bursting  shells.  I  saw  two 
burst  in  the  ranks  of  the  49th  New  York,  piling 
the  men  in  heaps,  but  the  49th  closed  up  at 
once  where  they  stood.  I  could  not  repress  a 
thrill  of  exultation  to  see  our  line  as  steady  as 
if  on  parade.  This  cannonade  was  the  prelude 
to  an  infantry  attack  which  succeeded,  as  it 
was  intended,  in  preventing  us  from  going  to 
help  Porter.  Brooks  and  Hancock  were  in  line 
in  front,  and  we  were  ordered  there  to  support 
Wheeler's  battery.  As  we  went  I  saw  a  long 
line  of  woolly  heads  burrowing  as  deep  as  pos 
sible  in  a  ditch,  and  no  one  blamed  our  cooks 
and  waiters  much.  Late  that  night  the  firing 
ceased.  We  all  slept  where  we  could  on  our 
arms,  and  the  fight  at  Golding's  was  over,  as 


GARNETT'S  HILL.  69 

well  as  the  great  battle  of  Gaines's  Mill,  where 
as  good  fighting  against  big  odds  was  done  by 
our  people  as  modern  wars  have  seen. 

The  next  morning  it  was  discovered  that  the 
enemy  by  the  defeat  of  Porter  had  turned  our 
flank,  and  were  in  position  to  attack  our  right 
and  rear.  Our  guns  were  removed  to  the  left, 
our  baggage  train  had  already  gone.  The  7th 
was  sent  with  axes  to  the  woods  to  make  ob 
structions  to  delay  pursuit.  By  noon  this  was 
done,  and  the  rebels  opened  fire  from  two  di 
rections.  Our  deserted  camps  were  riddled,  and 
the  scenes  of  the  night  before  repeated.  Soon 
their  infantry  came  forward.  Our  brigade  had 
the  front  this  time,  and,  after  an  hour's  fight, 
our  old  antagonist  at  Lee's  Mills  and  Mechan- 
icsville,  the  Georgia  brigade,  was  repulsed  with 
severe  loss.  I  saw  Colonel  Lamar  brought  in 
wounded  and  a  prisoner.  We  called  this  the 
"battle"  of  Garnett's  Hill,  and  it  had  the  ef 
fect  of  preventing  any  further  attack  that  day. 

We  began  to  get  uneasy  by  night.  We 
could  not  find  anybody  on  our  left,  and  we 
knew  there  were  none  of  our  troops  on  the 
right.  We  feared  we  were  cut  off,  and  as  the 
hours  of  the  night  went  on  we  felt  more  sure  of 
it.  It  was  an  uncanny  place,  the  stench  of  the 
dead  horses  prevented  sleep,  water  was  scarce, 
we  could  not  even  smile  at  Channing's  jokes, 


70  FOLLOWING   THE   GREEK   CROSS. 

and  the  lieutenant-colonel's  stories  for  once 
lost  their  interest.  Two  o'clock  came  :  will  our 
orders  never  come  ?  Three  o'clock  :  the  growing 
day  becomes  dimly  visible.  Just  as  the  light 
begins  to  steal  among  the  trees,  an  aide  dashed 
up,  and  away  we  go,  hardly  letting  a  canteen 
clink,  and  covering  for  a  time  the  retreat  of 
all  the  army.  We  called  it  then  a  "  change 
of  base,"  and  as  from  the  start  there  was 
hardly  a  day  of  the  "  seven  days'  "  retreat  in 
which  we  either  could  not  have  whipped,  or 
did  not  whip,  the  enemy,  it  is  proper  enough 
to  call  it  a  change  of  base. 


CHAPTEK  XII. 

"  I  '11  shplit  dein  like  Kartoffels  ; 
I  '11  slog  'em  on  de  kop  ; 
I  '11  set  the  blackguards  roonin 
So  they  don't  know  ven  to  shtop." 

HANS  BREITMANN. 

As  we  drew  near  the  Trent  House  and  passed 
on  to  Savage  Station,  fires  and  explosions  were 
the  order  of  the  day.  Here  an  immense  pile 
of  hard  bread  in  boxes,  enough  to  feed  a  prov 
ince  of  starving  Russians  for  days,  was  blazing ; 
there  a  long  line  of  whiskey  barrels  was  being 
destroyed ;  farther  on  was  a  huge  holocaust  of 
hospital  stores,  and  new  clothing  was  at  the 
will  of  every  chance  comer.  The  stragglers 
got  drunk  on  the  remnant  of  whiskey,  and 
decked  themselves  out  in  new  army  raiment, 
but  they  were  few  in  number.  Generally  the 
regiments  were  well  closed  up  and  in  great 
spirits  for  a  fight.  On  the  immense  plain  be 
yond  Savage  Station  several  divisions  were 
massed  under  General  Sumner  and  held  to 
attack  the  enemy  supposed  to  be  pursuing. 
Toward  night,  no  one  then  appearing,  the  ser 
ried  masses  began  to  unravel  themselves  and 


72  FOLLOWING   THE   GREEK   CROSS. 

stretch  out  on  the  road  to  the  James  River. 
Nearly  all  had  gone  but  Smith's  Division,  when 
a  sharp  cracking  of  rifles  where  the  Yermonters 
were  stretched  out  in  their  always  peerless 
skirmish  line,  announced  that  the  hosts  of  re 
bellion  were  catching  up  with  us. 

In  the  gray  of  the  evening  the  fight  of  Savage 
Station  was  made,  and  it  was  short,  sharp,  and 
decisive.  The  enemy  were  quickly  rolled  back 
into  the  woods  from  whence  they  came.  Our 
brigade,  in  column  by  division,  was  advancing 
as  support  when  they  broke,  and  I  heard,  "  Let 's 
give  them  the  bayonet !  "  repeatedly  called  out 
in  the  moving  mass.  As  darkness  fell  we  saw 
the  lights  of  those  helping  the  wounded  mingle 
with  the  fireflies'  glimmer  in  the  fields  in  the 
direction  of  Richmond,  while  toward  the  James 
River  bonfires  showed  us  the  road  we  were  to 
tread  that  tedious  night.  Water  was  scarce  and 
poor,  and  we  patiently  chewed  twigs  to  assuage 
thirst,  and  plodded  on  through  the  dust.  Some 
time  in  the  slow-moving  hours  I  fell  asleep, 
and  my  horse  had  his  own  sweet  will  till  I  was 
awakened  in  some  other  brigade  by  an  alarm. 
Runaway  horses  were  supposed  to  be  the  cav 
alry  of  the  foe,  and  in  an  instant,  as  far  as  I 
could  see,  the  road  was  as  vacant  as  it  was 
before  we  came  there.  The  thousands  of  Yan 
kees  had  taken  to  the  woods,  but  not  to  flee 


WHITE   OAK  SWAMP.  73 

away;  they  were  on  the  alert,  waiting  for  the 
horsemen  who  did  not  come. 

At  daybreak  we  crossed  White  Oak  Swamp, 
and  went  into  bivouac,  everybody  going  to  sleep 
where  he  halted.  I  was  sent  with  two  hundred 
men  to  picket  the  right,  and  I  had  scarcely  got 
them  into  place  when  Stonewall  Jackson,  from 
the  other  side  of  the  swamp,  opened  fire  on  the 
division  as  they  lay,  with  thirty-six  guns  firing 
by  battery.  There  was  then  "  a  mustering  in 
hot  haste."  Mott's  Battery  happened  to  be  in 
position,  and  was  knocked  into  smithereens  be 
fore  it  could  open  fire.  General  "  Baldy  "  Smith 
was  taking  a  bath  in  the  only  house  in  that  vi 
cinity,  when  a  shell  came  through  it,  killed  its 
owner,  and  away  went  division  headquarters. 

The  regiments  were  ordered  to  form  and 
march  to  the  rear  a  mile,  and  from  our  position 
we  were  proud  to  see  the  7th  Maine,  with  Colonel 
Connor  at  the  head,  close  up  on  its  colors  and 
slowly  move  to  its  allotted  place  over  a  plain  storm- 
swept  with  shells.  "  Why  don't  they  double- 
quick?"  said  we;  but  there  seemed  to  be  no 
hurry  about  the  regiment  that  day.  Then  came 
the  Germans  (20th  New  York),  and  their  large 
and  fine  array  drew  a  perfect  blizzard  from 
Jackson's  smoking  guns.  This  was  too  much 
for  the  Dutchmen.  They  wore  high,  conical, 
black  hats,  and  when  they  broke  and  ran  the 


74  FOLLOWING   THE   GREEK   CROSS. 

plain  was  dotted  far  and  wide  with  their  hats 
and  knapsacks. 

It  is  a  tradition  in  our  regiment  that  they  are 
running  still,  and  their  colonel,  who,  days  before, 
was  talking  about  the  blood  he  was  going  to 
shed,  and  who  certainly  led  the  wild  flight  several 
lengths,  may  not  have  stopped,  for  he  was  never 
heard  of  afterwards.  There  was  later  a  rumor 
that  he  was  running  a  beer  garden  in  Cincinnati, 
but  it  was  never  authenticated.  Our  experience 
with  the  Germans,  who  were  occasionally  present 
with  us  then,  always  made  us  somewhat  skeptical 
about  their  prowess  later  in  the  Franco-Prussian 
war,  but  the  trouble  with  them  was  that  they 
were  badly  officered. 

Next  came  the  magnificent  Vermont  brigade, 
most  worthy  successors  of  Ethan  Allen  and  the 
Green  Mountain  boys.  Old  General  Brooks  was 
at  their  head,  looking  cross  enough  to  stab  some 
one,  one  of  his  legs  bandaged  from  a  wound  re 
ceived  at  Savage  Station.  They  seemed  to  be  in 
no  hurry  either,  and  as  parts  of  the  regiments 
would  come  to  a  standstill  because  those  in  front 
were  moving  slowly,  we  could  see  the  Vermonters 
marking  time  to  the  screeches  and  wails  of  the 
death-dealing  rebel  shells.  When  they  had 
passed  we  seemed  to  be  alone  and  deserted  on 
our  low-lying  woody  hills  to  the  right. 

No  orders  came  for  us,  and  then  we  got  into 


RESULTS   OF  THE  DAY.  75 

shape  to  do  what  we  could  to  resist  the  enemy's 
advance,  but  they  only  sent  over  some  cavalry 
that  a  few  shots  drove  back.  We  waited  there 
several  hours,  and  heard  the  fierce  battle  of 
Glendale  raging  over  to  the  left ;  and  finally  I 
took  the  responsibility  of  retiring  on  the  divi 
sion,  which  was  in  a  fine  position  a  mile  back,  and 
found  we  were  supposed  to  have  been  cut  off. 
The  results  of  this  day  were  not  flattering  to  the 
Confederacy,  or  especially  so  to  us.  The  enemy 
had  fiercely  attacked  a  retreating  army,  and  had 
accomplished  nothing,  while  we  had  failed  to 
strike  back  as  we  should  have  done  because  we 
were  under  orders  to  retreat  to  the  James. 


CHAPTER  XIII. 

"  Serenely  full,  the  epicure  would  say, 
Fate  cannot  harm  me,  I  have  dined  to-day." 

SYDNEY  SMITH. 

THE  close  of  the  conflict  at  White  Oak  Swamp 
brought  us  no  rest,  for  after  waiting  till  near  mid 
night  for  a  clear  road  behind  us,  we  found  our 
selves  again  the  rear  guard,  and  filed  out  of  the 
woods  toward  the  James  River.  Ayres's  battery 
was  firing  slowly  in  the  direction  of  the  enemy, 
and  at  each  discharge  lit  up  the  gloomy  forest ; 
then  gun  after  gun  was  limbered  up  and  drawn 
away  after  us,  and,  as  they  passed  our  slow  march, 
we  saw  the  sturdy  and  gallant  battery  comman 
der  in  the  rear  of  all,  stroking  his  black  beard, 
and  looking  as  handsome  as  he  did  on  review. 

Another  long  night  of  tramping,  of  dust,  of 
thirst,  of  smothered  objurgation,  of  weary  strug 
gle  with  sleep.  "  The  night  is  long  when  comes 
the  morn,"  but  it  at  length  found  us  near  Mal- 
vern  Hill,  and  gave  us  a  few  hours  of  desired  re 
pose.  Then  news  came  that  the  rebel  army  was 
fast  approaching.  The  6th  corps  was  formed  in 
two  lines,  one  the  "  thin  blue  line,"  the  other  of 


MALVERN  HILL.  77 

regiments  in  column  of  division.  Our  verdict  was 
that  General  Franklin  had  got  us  into  fine  form, 
as  nearly  the  whole  corps  was  visible,  but  hardly 
were  we  in  shape  when  our  beloved  commander, 
General  McClellan,  at  the  head  of  a  vast  and 
brilliant  cavalcade,  approached  us.  He  rode 
rapidly  in  front  and  saluted  our  colors  as  he 
went  in  the  direction  of  the  firing  far  to  the  left. 
We  cheered  him,  for  as  yet  to  our  feeble  ken  he 
had  done  all  things  well,  and  the  love  borne  by 
soldiers  to  a  favorite  chief,  if  it  does  not  sur 
pass,  is  more  unreasoning  than  the  love  of  wo 
men.  And  so  we  waited  and  waited  in  formid 
able  array  and  good  position,  and  still  the  firing 
increased  toward  the  left.  We  wanted  them 
to  come  that  day.  Any  excitement  would 
have  been  better  than  the  heat,  the  hunger,  the 
thirst,  and  the  yearning  for  some  green  food,  for 
scarcely  any  of  us  had  tasted  even  a  potato  for 
weeks.  At  a  house  behind  our  line  were  the 
headquarters  of  the  division.  In  the  kitchen 
near  by,  an  ancient  colored  woman  was  found  by 
Captain  C.,  stirring  a  huge  pot  from  which 
odors  sweeter  than  those  of  "  Araby  the  blest  " 
were  exhaled.  The  general  and  staff  in  the 
house  were  impatiently  stalking  up  and  down 
and  eagerly  waiting  for  their  dinner.  "Is  it 
most  ready,  auntie  ?  "  said  our  captain.  "  It 's 
mos'  ready,  honey,"  and  as  he  began  to  taste  it 


78  FOLLOWING   THE   GREEK  CROSS. 

from  a  long  iron  spoon  and  to  inquire  kindly  after 
her  family,  "  Lord  a  massy,  massa,  be  you  the 
general  ?  "  said  she.  "  Why,  don't  you  know  me, 
auntie  ? "  said  the  captain,  and  in  an  instant 
was  out  of  the  hut  with  the  big  kettle ;  and 
when  we  saw  him  coming  over  the  hill  to  us, 
little  recking  how  the  hot  water  was  shaking 
and  spilling  over  his  legs,  the  soldier's  instinct 
told  us  it  was  refreshment  for  the  inner  man. 

The  officers  of  the  7th  bent  the  knee  around 
the  savory  mess  as  if  it  had  been  an  altar,  and 
each  putting  his  hand  in  the  dish  soon  got  his 
share  of  the  bacon  and  the  cabbage  and  the  de 
licious  Virginia  beans.  Our  cravings  for  some 
thing  green  were  so  fierce,  the  fire  of  a  battery 
or  the  thought  of  what  the  general  might  do 
could  not  have  stayed  us  till  the  "  platter  "  was 
as  clean  as  that  of  Jack  Sprat  and  his  la 
mented  spouse.  Our  late  soup  tureen  was 
hardly  hidden  in  a  copse  near  by  when  staff  of 
ficer  after  staff  officer  dashed  up  with  sharp  in 
quiry,  but  they  could  not  have  found  a  more 
innocent  looking  or  ignorant  lot  of  people,  and 
our  brave  men  on  the  line  of  battle  who  had  had 
none  of  the  toothsome  compound  were  very  con 
siderate  to  us,  for  they  did  not  even  smile  till  the 
staff  were  searching  some  other  brigade  and  the 
danger  was  over,  when  a  laugh  rippled  from  one 
end  of  the  regiment  to  the  other.  "  Who  stole 


GENERAL    W.  F.  SMITH 


MALVERN  HILL.  79 

the  general's  dinner  ?  "  was  long  a  perplexing 
query.  I  am  sorry  to  admit  we  laid  it  upon  the 
Germans,  and  their  fondness  for  loot  made  it 
a  credible  tale.  I  had  the  pleasure  two  years 
after  of  telling  General  Smith  the  bottom  facts, 
and  he  was  able  to  laugh  at  it  then,  for  it  was  an 
after-dinner  story. 

As  the  day  wore  on,  the  firing  toward  the 
left  grew  apace.  After  a  refreshing  bath  in 
a  brook  six  inches  deep,  I  conceived  the  idea 
that  it  would  be  a  good  thing  to  see  what  was 
going  on,  and  soon  found  myself  on  Malverii 
Hill,  where  I  could  admire  the  stern  array  of 
what  was  left  of  the  5th  corps,  shattered,  but 
dauntless  still,  and  wonder  at  the  grand  massing 
of  its  batteries  supported  by  the  artillery  re 
serve,  and  listen  to  the  deafening  roar  of  the 
great  guns  from  the  war  vessels  far  down  on  the 
James.  It  did  not  seem  that  they  would  be 
crazy  enough  to  attack  us  there,  and,  fearing  our 
corps  might  be  engaged  before  I  could  get 
back,  I  did  not  stand  upon  the  order  of  my 
going,  but  returned  at  once.  We  lay  in  line  till 
dark,  still  listening  to  a  most  furious  cannonade 
and  fusillade,  which  only  ceased  as  the  stars  came 
out,  while  in  our  front  the  cuckoo's  song  was  un 
disturbed,  until  "  the  moping  owl  did  to  the  moon 
complain."  We  heard  afterward  how  the  best 
chivalry  of  the  South  had  for  hours  dashed 


80  FOLLOWING   THE   GREEK   CROSS. 

themselves  upon  Porter's  lines  in  vain ;  how 
Hunt's  unsurpassed  artillery  had  not  allowed 
the  enemy's  attacking  columns  to  keep  their  for 
mation  long  enough  to  get  near  his  guns  ;  how 
the  army  of  Northern  Virginia,  than  whom  no 
better  infantry  ever  fought  in  any  field,  were 
utterly  broken  and  defeated ;  and  still  we  were 
to  struggle  back  through  the  mud  toward  Har 
rison's  Landing  and  the  "  fleshpots  of  Egypt." 
The  order  to  go  forward  and  seek  our  rations  in 
Richmond  would  have  been  received  with  wild 
enthusiasm,  for  the  rank  and  file  of  the  Army  of 
the  Potomac  were  there  for  business  then. 


CHAPTER  XIV. 

"  Who  knows  the  inscrutable  design  ? 
Blessed  be  He  who  took  and  gave  ! 
Why  should  your  mother,  Charles,  not  mine, 
Be  weeping  at  her  darling's  grave  ? 
We  bow  to  Heaven  that  willed  it  so, 
That  darkly  rules  the  fate  of  all, 
That  sends  the  respite  or  the  blow, 
That  's  free  to  give  or  to  recall." 

THACKERAY. 

IN  a  recent  conversation  with  General  Fitz 
John  Porter,  he  told  me  that  after  the  battle  of 
Malvern  Hill  closed  he  sent  an  urgent  message 
to  General  McClellan  advising  an  advance  on 
Richmond,  but  when  it  reached  army  headquar 
ters  orders  had  already  been  issued  for  retreat 
to  Harrison's  Landing  and  no  attention  was 
paid  to  his  message. 

The  night  after  Malvern  Hill  was  but  a  repe 
tition  of  the  other  nights  of  the  seven  days'  bat 
tles,  except  that  rain  set  in.  At  first  this  made 
it  more  comfortable,  but  a  Virginia  rain  is  very 
piercing,  and  in  time  will  get  through  rubber 
coats  and  blankets  and  trickle  down  into  one's 
boots,  and,  besides,  turn  the  sacred  soil  into  the 
thickest  red  mud  imaginable.  And  when  this 
mud  has  been  churned  by  the  wheels  of  a  wagon 


82  FOLLOWING   THE   GREEK  CROSS. 

train  twenty  miles  long,  the  result  is  almost 
incredible.  We  read  that  the  "  army  swore 
terribly  in  Flanders ; "  so  there  was  an  ancient 
precedent  for  our  teamsters. 

In  the  morning  the  rain  increased,  and  as  we 
approached  the  rolling  hills  by  the  river  I  saw 
(and  I  expect  unbelief)  a  mule  go  all  under,  ex 
cept  his  ears,  in  the  mud.  He  was  not  a  very 
large  mule,  and  he  certainly  was  not  a  play 
ful  one  after  he  was  dragged  out. 

The  river  bottom  at  Harrison's  Landing  was 
large  and  easily  defended.  The  gunboats  looked 
after  each  flank,  and  the  ground  in  front  was 
open.  It  was  the  hottest  place  we  had  yet  discov 
ered,  and  there  was  a  plague  of  flies,  but  we  got 
on  clean  clothing  and  dressed  our  scurvy  sores, 
and,  when  a  bushel  of  young  cabbages  were  pro 
cured  from  a  transport  ship,  life  seemed  to  be 
worth  living  again. 

An  officer  in  a  marching  regiment  has  but  a 
very  limited  field  of  vision,  so  far  as  military 
operations  are  concerned,  and  I  am  trying  to 
keep  to  my  own  field  of  vision  only. 

One  night  we  were  awakened  by  round  shot 
shrieking  by  us  from  the  rear,  and  a  strange 
sensation  it  was.  The  rebels  had  posted  a  bat 
tery  on  the  other  side  of  the  James,  and  for  a 
brief  time  had  the  whole  Army  of  the  Potomac 
for  a  mark.  The  heat,  the  monotony,  and  our 


110 ME  AGAIN.  83 

ill  success,  added  to  the  malaria  of  the  Chicka- 
hominy,  produced  a  frightful  amount  of  sick 
ness.  I  think  about  half  of  our  regiment  were 
sent  to  the  hospitals  North,  and,  as  usual,  the 
most  stalwart  men  were  first  attacked. 

As  there  seemed  to  be  no  prospect  of  employ 
ment,  I  succeeded  in  getting  ten  days'  leave, 
and,  tough  and  healthy,  though  reduced  to  one 
hundred  and  twenty  pounds,  I  took  ship  for  my 
far  Northern  home.  How  good  the  soft  bread 
tasted ;  how  strange  the  beds ;  how  close  the 
rooms ;  and  the  girls,  how  wildly  beautiful. 
The  holy  emotions  of  a  mother's  welcome  are 
beyond  my  feeble  pen.  The  days  flew  by  on 
angels'  wings,  and  again  the  farewell  and  the 
long  railway  journey  southward. 

On  arriving  at  Fortress  Monroe,  we  found  that 
the  army  was  moving  down  the  Peninsula,  and 
the  only  way  to  find  our  regiment  was  to  wait 
for  its  coming.  A  few  of  us  went  to  the  Atlan 
tic  House,  Norfolk,  for  two  or  three  days  to 
have  our  last  experience  of  luxurious  living  for 
some  time,  but  at  length  the  6th  corps  appeared, 
and  our  comrades,  lean,  embrowned,  and  ragged, 
received  us  with  laughing  eyes.  While  in  camp 
till  embarkation,  we  used  to  send  small  negroes 
out  for  oysters,  and  cook  them  on  the  river  bank 
as  soon  as  brought  in;  and  till  then  we  had 
never  really  been  acquainted  with  the  Ameri 
can  oyster. 


84  FOLLOWING    THE    GREEK   CROSS. 

The  lieutenant-colonel  falling  ill,  I  at  last  was 
in  command  of  the  regiment,  and  to  say  I  was 
proud  and  happy  with  my  lot  is  by  far  too  inex 
pressive.  Our  time  came  to  embark  for  Alexan 
dria  to  join  General  Pope's  army,  supposed  to 
be  fighting  near  Washington,  and  while  we  were 
eager  to  do  our  duty,  it  was  an  unpleasing  pros 
pect  to  be  placed  under  command  of  a  general 
who  had  insulted  the  Army  of  the  Potomac  in  his 
orders,  and  whom  we  already  had  sized  up  for  a 
braggart.  If  McClellan  and  many  of  his  gen 
erals  shared  this  feeling  they  could  hardly  do 
otherwise,  for  it  was  almost  universal  with  the 
rank  and  file. 

We  went  into  camp  near  Alexandria  for  a 
night,  but  before  our  horses  and  baggage  had 
arrived,  and  without  artillery,  we  were  started 
out  in  support  of  Pope.  I  had  then  the  expe 
rience  of  a  twenty-mile  march  over  the  stony 
pike  with  new  boots  on,  under  the  stimulus 
of  the  distant  roar  of  cannon.  Franklin  was 
afterward  accused  of  slowness  and  delay  on 
that  day,  but  footsore  and  weary  I  could  have 
testified  strongly  to  the  contrary.  We  filed 
into  a  cornfield  for  the  night's  bivouac.  Our 
mess  cart  had  been  left  behind,  but  roasted  ears 
of  corn  made  a  good  supper,  and  the  night  was 
comfortable  without  blankets.  Young  regimen 
tal  officers  had  not  even  then  learned  how  to 


SECOND  BULL  RUN.  85 

make  themselves  comfortable  while  campaign 
ing,  perhaps  because  we  thought  the  hardships 
inevitable.  We  often  fared  worse  than  the  men, 
and  did  not  like  to  borrow  from  their  sometimes 
scanty  rations. 

Early  in  the  next  day's  march,  we  reached 
Centreville  Heights  and  halted.  The  panorama 
was  magnificent.  Far  in  the  distance,  in  open 
rolling  country,  a  great  battle  was  going  on. 
The  battle  smoke  stretched  on  both  sides  as  far 
as  the  eye  could  reach,  and  its  change  of  position 
only  announced  which  side  was  winning.  After 
some  time  it  became  painfully  evident  which 
side  it  was,  as  our  line  contracted  toward  us,  and 
the  hills  and  fields  became  dotted  with  the  strag 
gling  and  the  wounded.  I  was  ordered  to  throw 
the  regiment  out  as  skirmishers  a  mile  to  the 
left,  lest  the  enemy  might  attempt  to  pierce  be 
tween  the  retreat  and  Centreville.  To  take  care 
of  a  few  hundred  skirmishers  when  dismounted 
and  lame  is  not  a  sinecure,  but  we  got  there  at 
last,  and  from  the  summit  of  a  high  stump  I 
anxiously  waited  an  attack  till  dark.  Then  in 
the  usual  rain  we  were  withdrawn  to  a  wet  biv 
ouac  of  an  hour  or  two  near  a  house  on  the  hills 
of  Centreville.  While  watching  the  battle  I 
had  been  wondering  where  my  dear  friend  and 
classmate  Sam  Fessenden  (son  of  William 
Pitt  Fessenden,  our  distinguished  Senator)  was, 


86  FOLLOWING   THE   GREEK   CROSS. 

and  how  it  went  with  him.  He  was,  I  knew,  on 
Tower's  staff  in  Pope's  army,  but  my  gloomy 
forebodings  did  not  tell  me  that  in  the  house  so 
near  he  lay  mortally  wounded,  brave  and  re 
signed  to  the  last. 

About  eleven  that  night  we  were  roused  up 
and  ordered  to  march  back  some  miles  toward 
Alexandria  to  form  across  the  pike,  and  to  stop 
all  stragglers.  It  almost  made  me  feel  mutinous 
to  drag  out  our  tired  men,  but  it  was  done  in 
some  way,  and  by  morning  we  had  over  two 
thousand  of  Pope's  army  in  a  great  corral. 

Thus  ended  the  second  battle  of  Bull  Run ;  a 
great  disaster  to  our  army.  The  only  things 
I  can  now  admire  on  our  side,  were  the  wise  dis 
cretion  of  Porter  in  not  attacking  Jackson's 
right  when  so  ordered,  because  Longstreet  was 
between  them,  and  the  persistent  fighting  of  the 
1st  corps  under  poor  leadership. 


CHAPTER  XV. 

"So  thus  did  both  these  nobles  die 
Whose  courage  none  can  stain." 

Chevy  Chase. 

FOR  days  after  this  battle  of  Manassas  (as  the 
rebels  called  it)  affairs  on  our  side  seemed  to  be 
in  a  state  of  disastrous  collapse.  Before  we  left 
the  heights  of  Centreville  in  a  storm  of  thunder 
and  rain,  we  saw  shells  bursting  vigorously  over 
the  woods  toward  our  right  and  rear,  and  crashes 
of  musketry  were  sometimes  audible  in  the  tur 
moil  of  the  storm. 

At  Chantilly,  Philip  Kearny,  a  paladin  of  old, 
though  born  in  our  times,  and  the  soldierly 
first  governor  of  Oregon,  General  I.  I.  Stevens, 
made  this  Virginia  forest  illustrious  by  their 
deaths.  From  the  day  he  left  his  arm  at  the 
gates  of  Mexico,  General  Kearny  had  illumined 
a  record,  the  pride  of  every  American  soldier. 
His  gallant  foes  returned  his  body  to  our  lines 
in  sorrow.  How  we  all  honor  the  courage  to  do 
and  dare,  but  when  this  is  conspicuous  among 
thousands,  we  can  almost  envy  the  death  which 
illustrates  it.  General  Stevens  had  a  son  who 
afterward  became  known  to  me,  and  he  was  one 


88  FOLLOWING   THE   GREEK   CROSS.] 

whom  youth  only  prevented  from  rising  to  great 
heights  in  the  military  career.  Some  years  later 
he  was  the  first  man  to  ascend  Mount  Rainier, 
and  at  the  summit  his  party  was  saved  from  de 
struction  by  the  volcanic  heat  still  remaining  in 
a  mountain  cave.  The  people  of  Tacoma  when 
I  visited  there  were  still  loath  to  believe  that 
any  one  attempting  it  had  ever  come  back  from 
the  summit  alive,  and  the  Indians  had  a  tradition 
that  one  of  their  choice  spirits  of  evil  made 
there  his  dwelling-place  and  forever  forbade  hu 
man  approach.  Any  who  knew  Hazard  Stevens 
would  not  doubt  his  daring  or  his  story. 

What  a  gloomy  time  it  was  tramping  back 
toward  Washington !  How  the  rumors  of  disas 
ter  on  disaster  came  to  dispirit  us !  But  soon 
came  the  news  that  General  McClellan  was  to 
the  fore  again,  and  every  heart  was  lighter.  Con 
fidence  seemed  to  cling  about  this  man.  Why 
was  it  ?  He  proved  no  Napoleon,  but  we  all  be 
lieved  in  him.  May  not  his  innate  purity  and 
goodness  have  forced  the  homage  we  paid  to  the 
military  genius  we  assumed  for  him  ? 

As  we  approached  Washington  the  stalwart 
new  regiments  of  the  second  three  hundred 
thousand  call  greeted  us  from  the  earthworks, 
in  their  clean  new  uniforms,  but  the  Army  of  the 
Potomac  looked  very  much  like  Falstaff' s  army 
then.  How  we  cheered  McClellan  as  we  passed 


THE    GALLANT  SWEDE.  89 

his  headquarters,  nearly  opposite  where  Worm- 
ley's  Hotel  now  stands. 

Colonel  the  Baron  Yon  Vegesack  was  in  com 
mand  of  our  brigade  that  night,  and  he  was  soon 
to  make  his  regiment,  the  runaway  Germans, 
the  soldiers  they  were  intended  to  be.  Of  all 
the  foreign  officers  I  knew,  and  there  were  scores 
of  them  with  us,  he  was  the  best.  None  of  the 
old  captains  of  Gustavus  Adolphus  did  more 
honor  to  the  fatherland.  He  is  now  a  major- 
general  in  well-earned  retirement  in  his  native 
Sweden,  but  he  deserves  thanks  from  the  Repub 
lic  in  no  less  degree  than  Lafayette,  only  that  our 
needs  were  less.  He  has  long  passed  the  allotted 
age  of  man,  and  I  have  no  doubt  that  all  the 
honors  he  has  received  at  home  will  fade  as  he 
remembers  our  plaudits  when  he  breasted  the 
storm  of  rebel  bullets  at  Antietam  and  redeemed 
the  honor  of  the  20th  New  York  Volunteers. 

Orders  were  very  strict  that  night  that  none 
should  leave  the  column  which  was  pushing  out 
toward  Tenallytown,  but  a  very  polite  request 
to  Colonel  V.  got  two  or  three  of  us  an  hour's 
leave  and  a  chance  to  mingle  with  the  festive 
throng  at  Willard's,  and  to  see  some  friends 
from  home.  A  long  midnight  gallop  brought 
us  back  again  to  the  sleepy  throng  just  entering 
Maryland,  and  enjoying  their  first  taste  of  cam 
paigning  on  Northern  soil.  Our  next  bivouac 


90  FOLLOWING   THE   GREEK  CROSS. 

seemed  very  conveniently  situated  as  to  chickens, 
and  corn,  and  honey,  and  apple  butter,  and,  like 
the  Israelites  of  old,  we  looked  upon  the  land, 
and  it  was  good.  The  girls  no  longer  made 
faces  at  us  from  the  windows,  and  the  people 
were  down  at  their  front  gates  with  cool  water, 
at  least,  if  they  had  nothing  better.  It  seemed 
like  Paradise,  this  Maryland,  and  many  were  the 
blessed  damosels  we  saw  therein.  Where  was 
the  man  "  who  would  not  dare  to  fight  for  such 
a  land  ?  "  But  many  of  her  best  sons  had  be 
come  tainted  with  the  heresy  of  secession,  and 
were  over  yonder  beyond  the  blue  mountains 
waiting  to  give  us  the  worst  blizzard  of  cold  lead 
we  had  yet  encountered.  I  don't  remember  that 
we  got  very  tired  in  these  first  marches  after 
Lee.  They  could  not  have  been  very  long  ones. 
The  regiments  were  quite  small.  I  was  still  in 
command,  and  used  to  count  mine  once  or  twice 
a  day,  in  the  hope  of  finding  a  few  more  pres 
ent,  but  we  never  had  in  this  campaign  more 
than  two  hundred  and  twenty-five.  They  were 
all  seasoned  veterans  and  equal  to  anything. 
I  did  not  believe  the  same  number  of  sol 
diers  of  the  great  Frederick  could  have  stood 
against  them.  I  was  boyishly  sanguine  about 
what  these  people  of  the  7th  Maine  could  do  in 
the  business  they  were  engaged  in,  and,  as  I 
look  back  over  so  many  years,  I  cannot  but 


COLONEL   ERNST   VON   VEGESACK 


MY  MARYLAND.  91 

acknowledge  that  they  always  justified  my  faith 
in  them. 

When  camping  in  Baltimore,  I  had  con 
ceived  the  idea  of  learning  by  name  every  man 
in  the  regiment.  As  I  had  plenty  of  time,  it  was 
accomplished,  and  proved  of  vast  use  in  many 
ways.  I  learned  first  the  sergeants,  then  the 
corporals,  then  the  tall  men  on  the  right  of 
companies,  and  so  on,  and  I  earnestly  commend 
the  idea  to  any  one  who  has  occasion  to  command 
men.  If  you  have  the  opportunity  to  do  anything 
for  a  man,  and  there  are  plenty  of  such  chances 
in  war-time,  he  likes  so  much  better  to  be  known 
personally. 

The  farther  we  penetrated  this  favored  land, 
the  happier  we  became.  Our  past  sufferings  on 
the  Chickahominy  were  but  a  dream,  and  we 
were  a  light-hearted  army  of  some  fifty  or  sixty 
thousand  youthful  soldiers  when  we  drew  near  to 
the  rugged  crests  of  South  Mountain,  little  reck 
ing  whether  the  passage  of  its  passes  was  to  be 
disputed,  or  rough  climbing  only  was  to  be 
our  portion. 


CHAPTER  XVI. 

"Oh,  what  is  Death  but  parting  breath, 
On  many  a  bloody  plain 
I've  dared  his  face, 
And  in  this  place, 
I  '11  meet  him  yet  again." 

BURNS. 

AFTER  several  slow  and  deliberate  marches, 
we  drew  near  the  South  Mountain  range,  near 
Crampton's  Gap.  As  our  column  got  to  the 
little  town  of  Burksville,  we  could  see  Slocum's, 
our  first  division,  in  line  and  apparently  about 
to  force  the  passes,  when  the  smoke  of  a  battery 
on  the  far  mountain  side  was  soon  followed  by 
round  shot  shrieking  overhead.  We  were  or 
dered  to  take  the  double-quick,  and  through 
the  street  of  Burksville  we  went,  while  cannon 
balls  crashed  among  the  houses,  and  the  women, 
young  and  old,  with  great  coolness,  waved  their 
handkerchiefs  and  flags  at  us.  It  was  very 
refreshing  to  have  the  sympathy  for  once  of  the 
female  part  of  the  community.  That  and  the 
clear  mountain  air  made  our  campaigning  such 
a  contrast  to  the  sickening  surroundings  of  the 
Peninsula.  Slocum's  people  went  right  up  the 
pass,  driving  all  before  them,  and  we  close  after, 


PICKET  ON  THE  MOUNTAIN.  93 

in  support,  having  all  the  excitement  and  exhil 
aration  of  a  fight  without  its  usual  bloodshed. 
The  mountains  were  echoing  the  rattle  of  a  con 
test  over  to  our  right,  where  the  9th  corps  were 
forcing  Turner's  Pass,  losing  General  Keno  and 
many  men.  On  the  whole,  this  battle  at  Cramp- 
ton's  Gap  was  very  creditable  to  our  arms.  We 
had  three  thousand  men  actually  engaged,  and 
the  enemy  two  thousand  ;  but  ours  had  to  climb 
up  to  them,  which  more  than  made  up  the  differ 
ence.  We  got  four  flags  and  four  hundred  pris 
oners,  and  General  Franklin  could  congratulate 
himself  upon  a  successful  encounter,  —  well 
planned  and  quickly  over. 

That  night  on  picket  at  the  summit  of  the 
range,  I  suffered  from  a  bad  toothache  till 
morning  dawned,  when  I  rode  in  search  of  relief. 
After  some  miles,  I  came  upon  a  country  doc 
tor's  office.  He  was  a  very  small  man,  and  he 
tried  to  get  that  tooth  out  with  a-,  dental  instru 
ment  of  the  last  century,  which  was  a  sort  of 
pry,  —  a  small  crow-bar.  He  was  not  strong 
enough,  and  after  repeated  efforts  he  summoned 
a  passing  teamster  to  his  assistance,  and  the 
work  was  soon  done. 

That  day  we  marched  over  into  Pleasant  Val 
ley,  where  the  faint  boom  of  cannon  from  dis 
tant  Harper's  Ferry  could  be  heard.  The 
division  was  off  by  itself,  and,  as  we  could  see  a 


94  FOLLOWING   THE   GREEK  CROSS. 

rebel  line  stretching  across  the  valley  a  mile  or 
so  in  advance,  we  expected  a  fight  of  our 
own.  It  appeared  as  if  we  were  going  to  the 
relief  of  Harper's  Ferry,  but  the  distant  firing 
suddenly  stopped,  which  was  sad  evidence  of  its 
fall. 

No  advance  was  made,  and  at  dawn,  after 
a  refreshing  night  in  a  half-filled  hay-cart,  I 
started  off  at  the  head  of  a  high-spirited  and 
happy  regiment  toward  —  we  knew  not  what. 
But  the  angel  of  death  was  already  hovering 
over  the  Antietam,  and  the  Army  of  the  Potomac 
was  converging  toward  its  bloodiest  battle. 

About  nine  o'clock  the  firing  ahead  of  us  be 
came  louder,  and  reminded  us  of  Fair  Oaks,  and 
we  soon  were  meeting  hundreds  of  wounded 
coming  to  the  rear.  The  77th  New  York  was 
just  in  front  on  the  road,  and  I  could  not  see 
much  beyond  them  for  dust ;  but  as  we  passed 
acclivity  after  acclivity,  and  the  diapason  of  the 
artillery  and  the  rattle  of  small  arms  grew 
louder,  we  all  felt  we  had  got  to  brace  ourselves, 
for  the  trying  moment  must  soon  come.  The 
regiment  looked  so  small,  I  made  our  eight 
or  ten  drummers  and  fifers  arm  themselves 
with  guns  picked  up  by  the  roadside,  and  join 
their  companies.  I  could  see  occasionally  men 
fall  out  from  the  regiments  in  front ;  but  only 
one  of  ours,  and  he  was  sick,  went  to  the 


THE    GERMANS  REDEEMED.  95 

rear.  It  was  refreshing  to  turn  from  the  crowds 
of  wounded  streaming  back  and  look  at  the  firm 
set  faces  behind  me,  every  one  of  them  known  to 
me  personally,  and  never  known  to  lack  nerve 
in  danger.  But  the  77th  began  to  double- 
quick  as  we  came  to  some  woods;  we  fol 
lowed  suit  and  soon  passed  by  the  10th 
Maine,  that  splendid  regiment  reduced  to  a 
small  squad.  I  asked  for  Beal  and  Fillebrown, 
and  was  told  they  were  down.  Then  I  could 
see  the  long  line  of  Germans  moving  obliquely 
to  the  left,  while  the  77th  were  going  straight 
on,  when  Captain  Long,  our  adjutant  general, 
ordered  me  to  go  in  on  the  left  of  the  Germans. 
It  took  but  an  instant  to  get  the  regiment  for 
ward  into  line,  and  then,  left  half  wheeling  like 
a  large  company,  we  were  out  of  the  woods,  and 
the  whole  magnificent  panorama  of  the  field  of 
the  Antietam  was  in  full  view.  The  Germans, 
some  eight  hundred  strong,  were  moving  in  fine 
line,  and  looked  so  well  that  the  whole  fire  of 
the  enemy  was  being  concentrated  upon  them. 
Colonel  Vegesack  and  his  field  officers  were 
riding  behind  them,  and  pushing  them  on  in  the 
most  spirited  manner.  Seeing  a  body  of  the 
enemy  about  some  barns  on  our  left  flank,  we 
charged  them,  tearing  the  rail  fences  down  as 
we  went.  We  soon  drove  them  out,  losing 
a  dozen  men,  and  then  dashed  back  again  at  the 


96  FOLLOWING   THE   GREEK   CROSS. 

run  and  lay  down  on  the  left  of  the  Germans, 
who  had  lost  heavily. 

I  remember  in  this  charge  passing  over  what 
had  been  a  Confederate  regiment  of  perhaps 
four  hundred  men.  There  they  were,  both 
ranks,  file  closers  and  officers,  as  they  fell,  for 
so  few  had  been  the  survivors  it  seemed  to  me 
the  whole  regiment  were  lying  there  in  death. 
Their  clothing  was  of  gray,  or  butternut  color, 
and  my  impression  was  that  they  all  had  red  or 
very  light  hair.  At  this  time  I  saw  Lieutenant 
Emery  of  Skowhegan  jump  in  the  air  and  fall 
rolling  over  several  times  apparently  in  great 
agony,  but  he  was  back  with  us  in  a  short  time : 
a  bullet  had  struck  his  belt-plate. 

It  was  now  about  one  o'clock.  We  had  re 
taken  the  line  we  were  ordered  to  retake.  Five 
or  six  of  our  batteries  were  firing  over  our  heads 
at  as  many  of  the  enemy's  batteries  near  the 
Dunker  Church,  which  were  busily  returning 
the  fire.  The  Irish  brigade  were  charging  up 
to  the  line  over  to  the  left ;  the  Vermonters 
came  up  deliberately  to  our  left  and  rear,  and 
then  we  hugged  the  ground  for  several  hours. 
Where  we  were,  a  lot  of  boulders  in  front  pro 
tected  us  fairly  well,  but  it  was  more  open  in 
front  of  the  Germans,  and  every  few  minutes 
some  of  them  would  be  struck  and  go  to  the 
rear,  while  scarcely  any  of  our  regiment 


FINE  SIIARPSIIOOTING.  97 

were  injured.  I  went  over  to  Colonel  Vegesack 
and  told  him  they  were  specially  singling  him 
out,  as  his  colors  were  held  so  high,  and  advised 
lowering  them  a  little.  "  Let  them  wave  :  they 
are  our  glory,"  said  the  brave  old  Swede,  and 
he  kept  on  riding  back  and  forth  behind  the 
regiment,  revolver  in  hand  to  shoot  the  skulkers, 
the  most  prominent  object  in  the  field. 

While  on  the  Peninsula,  a  private  named 
Knox,  who  was  a  wonderful  shot,  got  permis 
sion  to  use  his  own  rifle,  a  valuable  weapon. 
As  we  lay  under  the  storm  of  shot  and  shell,  he 
asked  me  to  let  him  go  out  in  front,  and  every 
few  minutes  for  an  hour  we  heard  his  rifle 
crack.  I  found  a  place  where  I  could  see  his 
work.  He  had  driven  away  every  one  from  a 
section  of  guns.  As  fast  as  a  man  would  come 
forward  to  fire,  Knox  would  tumble  him  over. 
A  general  officer  and  staff  came  into  view,  and 
his  horse  was  promptly  knocked  over,  and  as 
promptly  they  all  disappeared.  At  the  end  of 
an  hour  or  so,  he  came  in  and  disconsolately 
showed  me  his  pet  rifle.  A  piece  of  shell  had 
struck  the  breech  and  completely  ruined  it ;  but 
he  took  three  rifles  left  by  the  wounded  and 
went  back  to  his  deadly  work. 

From  where  we  lay  we  could  see  Richardson's 
division  beyond  the  Vermonters  on  our  left, 
and  in  the  far  distance,  the  long-delayed  efforts 


98  FOLLOWING   THE   GREEK   CROSS. 

of  Burnside  and  the  sturdy  lines  of  the  Confed 
erates  opposing  him,  and  they  were  almost 
perpendicular  to  ours  ;  off  to  our  left  and  rear 
was  Porter's  corps,  idle.  But  hills  forbade  all 
knowledge  of  what  was  being  done  to  the  right, 
and  the  smoke  of  many  guns  made  it  impossible 
to  see  to  our  rear,  whether  reinforcements  were 
being  brought  up,  or  whether  there  were  indica 
tions  of  our  being  ordered  forward.  It  was 
drawing  near  five  o'clock.  Custom  had  brought 
indifference  to  the  fire,  and  we  were  expecting 
soon  to  be  relieved,  little  knowing  that  in  a  few 
minutes  more  the  7th  Maine  were  to  find  their 
Balaklava. 


CHAPTER  XVII. 

"  Was  there  a  man  dismayed  ? 
Not  tho'  the  soldier  knew 
Some  one  had  blundered."  , 

TENNYSON. 

COLONEL  IRVIN  of  the  49th  Pennsylvania  com 
manded  our  brigade  at  Antietam.  He  was  a 
soldier  of  the  Mexican  War,  and  had  been 
wounded  at  Resaca  de  la  Palma.  He  was  a 
gallant  man,  but  drank  too  much,  of  which  I  was 
then  unaware. 

Between  four  and  five  o'clock,  a  Maryland 
battery  was  brought  up  on  our  line,  and  Upton, 
Slocum's  chief  of  artillery,  came  up  to  look 
after  it,  and  Colonel  Irvin  followed  him.  As 
Colonel  Irvin  passed  the  battery,  its  commander, 
who  was  Dutch,  complained  bitterly  that  sharp 
shooters  were  picking  off  his  men,  and  pointed 
out  where  they  were,  near,  some  haystacks  by 
Piper's  barns.  These  were  not  far  from  the 
Hagerstown  Pike,  a  short  distance  from  the 
main  street  of  Sharpsburg,  and  behind  the 
centre  of  the  rebel  position.  Colonel  Irvin  rode 
to  where  I  was  lying  on  the  ground,  and  said, 
"  Major  Hyde,  take  your  regiment  and  drive  the 


100          FOLLOWING   THE   GREEK   CROSS. 

enemy  away  from  those  trees  and  buildings." 
I  saluted,  and  said,  "  Colonel,  I  Lave  seen  a 
large  force  of  rebels  go  in  there,  I  should  think 
two  brigades."  What  I  had  seen  must  have 
been  reinforcements  going  to  repulse  Burnside. 
"  Are  you  afraid  to  go,  sir  ? "  said  he,  and  re 
peated  the  order  emphatically.  "  Give  the 
order  so  the  regiment  can  hear  it  and  we  are 
ready,  sir,"  said  I,  which  he  did,  and  "  Atten 
tion  !  "  brought  every  man  to  his  feet.  We  had 
two  young  boys  carrying  the  marking  guidons, 
and  I  told  them  to  go  to  the  rear,  but  they  pre 
tended  to  do  so  and  afterwards  came  along. 
One  of  them,  Johnny  Begg,  soon  after  lost  his 
arm,  and  the  other,  George  Williams,  was 
buried  on  the  field.  Color  Corporal  Harry 
Campbell  had  the  colors,  and  I  started  to  give 
them  to  Sergeant  Perry  Greenleaf,  but  Camp 
bell  felt  so  badly  I  let  him  keep  them.  I  gave  the 
order  to  left  face  and  forward,  and  we  marched 
over  in  front  of  the  Yermonters,  as  the  ground 
immediately  before  us  was  too  rough,  and  was 
also  more  exposed  to  the  batteries  by  Dunker 
Church.  Then,  facing  to  the  front,  we  crossed 
the  sunken  road,  which  was  so  filled  with  the 
dead  and  wounded  of  the  enemy  that  my  horse 
had  to  step  on  them  to  get  over.  We  stopped 
in  the  trampled  corn  on  the  other  side  to 
straighten  our  line,  and  then  I  gave  the  order  to 


VAIN  HEROISM. 


1(51 


charge,  directing  the  regiment  on  a  point  to  the 
right  of  Piper's  barns.  We  were  moving  at  the 
double-quick  down  into  a  cup-shaped  valley,  fif 
teen  skirmishers  under  Lieutenant  Butler  in 
front,  Adjutant  Haskell  on  Colonel  Connor's  big 
white  horse  on  the  left,  and  I  to  the  right  on  my 
Virginia  thoroughbred.  My  feeling  was  first  of 
great  exhilaration,  which  was  quickly  dashed  by 
that  wretched  Maryland  battery,  who,  thinking 
to  open  over  our  heads,  took  four  men  out  of  my 
right  company  at  their  first  shot.  Seeing  Has 
kell  had  fallen,  and  old  "  Whitey,"  too,  I  rode 
round  in  front  of  the  regiment  just  in  time  to 
see  a  long  line  of  rebels  rise  from  behind  the 
stone  wall  of  the  Hagerstown  Pike,  which  was  to 
our  right  and  front,  and  pour  a  volley  into  us, 
which  did  not  do  so  much  damage  as  was  to  be 
expected,  we  were  going  so  fast.  At  this,  I 
gave  the  order,  "  Left  oblique,"  bringing  us  be 
hind  a  rise  of  ground  which  protected  us  some 
from  the  fire  of  the  stone  wall,  and  then  forward 
to  a  hill  just  to  the  right  of  and  beyond  Piper's 
barns.  As  we  breasted  this  hill,  being  some 
twenty  feet  in  front  of  the  regiment,  I  saw  over 
its  top  before  they  did,  and  there  were  several 
times  our  number  waiting  for  us  at  the  "  ready," 
so  I  gave  the  order  to  "  Left  flank  "  before  any 
of  my  line  appeared  over  the  hill  or  came  in 
sight  of  6ur  opponents,  and  then  directed  the  col- 


102          FOLLOWING   THE   GREEK  CROSS. 

limn,  still  at  the  double-quick,  by  Piper's  barns, 
from  which  the  rebels  had  gone,  straight  to  a 
clump  of  trees  where  there  was  a  fence  and  cow- 
yard,  and  on  to  the  orchard  beyond  Piper's  house, 
as  I  had  seen  a  force  running  in  that  direction 
to  head  us  off.  The  men  got  through  the  fence 
easily,  and,  as  Sergeant  Benson  was  wrenching 
it  apart  to  let  my  horse  through,  a  shot  struck 
his  haversack,  and  we  had  to  laugh  at  the  fly 
ing  hard-tack.  As  we  went  up  a  rise  of  ground 
into  the  orchard,  we  came  in  sight  of  the  Con 
federates  who  had  been  waiting  for  us  beyond 
the  hill,  and  they  fired  several  volleys,  and  then 
charged  after  us.  Here  we  met  our  heaviest 
loss.  My  horse  was  twice  wounded,  and  as  he 
was  rearing  and  plunging  I  slipped  off  over  his 
tail,  and  can  remember,  in  the  instant  I  was  on 
the  ground,  how  the  twigs  and  branches  of  the 
apple-trees  were  being  cut  off  by  musket  balls, 
and  were  dropping  in  a  shower.  Finding  he 
had  only  lost  his  back  teeth,  and  had  a  charge  of 
buck  and  ball  in  his  hip,  I  mounted  quickly.  I 
saw  the  regiment  had  got  into  line,  and,  while 
their  numerous  pursuers  were  coming  through 
the  fence  we  had  passed,  had  given  them  a  terri 
ble  fire,  as  the  pile  of  dead  found  there  after  the 
battle  attested.  Our  survivors  had  no  ammu 
nition  left. 

While  we   were   charging   down    the  valley, 


APPLAUSE  FROM  THE    VERMONTERS.      103 

Harry  Campbell,  carrying  the  colors,  was  struck 
in  the  arm.     He  held  it  up  to  me  all  bloody, 
waving    the     flag.     "Take     the    other    hand, 
Harry,"  said    I.     When   halfway   through   the 
orchard,  I  heard  him  call  out  as  if  in  pain  behind 
me,  and  went  back  to  save  the  colors  if  possible. 
The  apple-trees  were  short  and  I  could  not  see 
much,  but  soon  found  the  pursuing  enemy  were 
between  me  and  the  regiment,  and  I  read  "  Ma- 
nassas  "  on  one  of  their  flags,  so  I  turned  about 
and  as  quickly  as  possible  gained  the  corner  of  the 
orchard  and  found  the  regiment  had  got  through 
the    tall  picket    fence.      While  uncertain  how 
to  get  out,  I   was  surrounded   by  a   dozen    or 
more  rebels,  but  with  a  cry  of  "  Rally,  boys,  to 
save  the  major,"  back  surged  the  regiment,  the 
muzzles  of  their  Windsors  were  pushed  between 
the  pickets,  and  few  of  my  would-be  captors  got 
away.     Sergeant  Hill  with   his    sabre   bayonet 
cut  through  the  rails  and  I  was  soon  extricated. 
Our  batteries  had  been  for  some  minutes  throw 
ing  grape  into  the  orchard,  which  aided  us  much, 
though  we  were  more  afraid  of  the  grape  than 
of  the  enemy.     I  then  formed  the  regiment  on 
the  colors,  sixty-five  men  and  three  officers,  and 
slowly   we  marched   back  toward  our  place  in 
line.     The  batteries  by  Dunker  Church  opened 
on  us  at  first,  but  I  guess  they  thought  we  had 
pounding  enough,  for  they  stopped  after  a  few 


104          FOLLOWING   THE   GREEK  CROSS. 

shots.  But  our  main  line  rose  up  and  waved 
their  hats,  and  when  we  came  in  front  of  our 
dear  comrades,  the  Yermonters,  their  cheers 
made  the  welkin  ring.  General  Brooks  had 
told  their  colonels  when  they  begged  to  follow 
our  charge,  "  You  will  never  see  that  regiment 
again."  In  my  judgment,  we  only  needed  the 
Vermonters  behind  us  to  have  cut  through  to 
the  river,  and  a  few  more  brigades  in  support 
would  have  ended  the  business,  as  at  that  mo 
ment  Lee's  much-enduring  army  was  fought  out. 
We  did  not  take  a  large  space  on  the  line  as 
we  lay  down  in  the  falling  darkness,  and  when 
Channing,  Webber,  Nickerson,  and  I  got  to 
gether  under  one  blanket  for  the  night,  we  were 
womanish  enough  to  shed  tears  for  our  dead  and 
crippled  comrades.  Fifteen  officers  and  two 
hundred  and  twenty-five  men  in  the  morning, 
and  this  little  party  at  night !  We  had  the  con 
solation  of  knowing  that  we  had  gone  farther 
into  the  rebel  lines  than  any  Union  regiment 
that  day,  that  we  had  fought  three  or  four  times 
our  numbers,  and  inflicted  more  damage  than  we 
received,  but  as  the  French  officer  at  Balaklava 
said,  "  It  is  magnificent,  but  it  is  not  war." 
When  we  knew  our  efforts  were  resultant  from 
no  plan  or  design  at  headquarters,  but  were  from 
an  inspiration  of  John  Barleycorn  in  our  bri 
gade  commander  alone,  I  wished  I  had  been  old 


REBEL  REPORTS.  105 

enough,  or  distinguished  enough,  to  have  dared 
to  disobey  orders. 

REBEL  REPORTS. 

The  following  is  from  the  report  of  George 
T.  Anderson  of  the  llth  Georgia  regiment,  and 
a  brigade  commander  who  commanded  the 
force  pursuing  us  :  "I  moved  back  to  this  posi 
tion,  which  was  approved  by  General  Hill,  who, 
riding  forward  to  the  crest  of  the  hill  in  our 
front,  called  my  attention  to  a  line  of  the  enemy 
advancing  apparently  to  attack  us.  Suffering 
them  to  come  near  us,  I  ordered  my  command 
to  charge  them,  which  they  did  in  splendid  style 
and  good  order,  killing  and  wounding  many 
of  the  enemy,  taking  several  prisoners,  and  rout 
ing  the  remainder.  We  could  not  pursue  them 
as  far  as  I  wished  because  of  the  severe  fire  of 
artillery  directed  against  us  from  long-range 
guns  that  we  could  not  reach.  In  this  charge, 
parts  of  Wilcox's,  Featherstone's,  and  Prior's 
brigades  participated  with  mine,  and  all  officers 
and  men  behaved  admirably." 

From  the  report  of  Captain  Boyce,  Light 
Battery,  South  Carolina  Volunteers  :  — 

"  About  five  P.  M.  a  heavy  fire  of  musketry 
began  on  my  right  and  rear.  I  immediately 
ordered  out  my  two  pieces,  crossed  over  to  the 
slope  of  the  hill  lying  in  the  direction  of  the 


106         FOLLOWING   THE   GREEK   CROSS. 

town,  and  put  my  pieces  in  battery  commanding 
the  crest  of  the  two  hills  to  meet  the  enemy  if 
he  should  compel  our  forces  to  retire.  I  then 
went  forward  and  placed  my  guns  on  the  hill 
within  canister  range  of  the  enemy.  A  few 
shots  soon  drove  them  beyond  reach  of  canister. 
I  afterward  used  solid  shot,  cutting  down  his 
flag  and  driving  him  back." 

From  the  report  of  General  Rodes  :  — 
"It  is  proper  for  me  to  mention  here  that 
this  force  with  some  slight  additions  was  after 
ward  led  through  the  orchard  against  the  enemy 
by  General  D.  H.  Hill,  and  did  good  service, 
the  general  himself  handling  a  musket  in  the 

fight." 

From  the  report  of  Captain  Feltus,  command 
ing  16th  Mississippi  regiment :  — 

"  The  enemy  advanced  upon  us  in  line  of 
battle  about  four  or  five  o'clock  in  the  after 
noon.  The  remnant  of  the  regiment  in  their 
proper  position  in  the  brigade  moved  forward 
and  met  the  enemy  in  the  orchard  by  the  barn 
and  drove  them  back." 

These  are  fair  samples  of  the  reports  of  the 
other  side.  There  can  be  no  mistake  about  their 
referring  to  our  fight,  as  it  was  the  only  fighting 
on  the  right  or  centre  of  the  line  after  two 
o'clock  that  day.  The  reports  also  plainly 


CARING  FOR   THE    WOUNDED.  107 

indicate  the  number  of  people  we  were  contend 
ing  with. 

Early  in  the  morning  General  Franklin  and 
General  Smith  relieved  Irvin  from  command, 
and  ordered  us  to  headquarters  as  a  guard. 
General  McClellan  came  to  see  our  colors,  which 
had  been  brought  off  by  Corporal  King  and 
were  riddled  with  balls.  I  was  told  he  said 
many  kind  things,  but  at  the  time  I  had  gone 
out  to  the  orchard  to  see  if  I  could  find  any 
wounded.  I  found  Harry  Campbell,  hardly 
cold,  propped  up  against  a  tree  with  his  pipe 
beside  him.  As  they  kept  firing  on  me,  I 
could  make  no  arrangements  to  bring  the  bodies 
off  that  day.  The  wounded  had  either  died 
from  the  night  exposure,  or  had  been  taken  by 
the  rebels  to  Piper's  barns.  Many  had  got 
back  during  the  fight  to  our  hospitals. 

We  expected  to  renew  the  attack  this  day. 
Why  we  did  not  was  a  mystery  then,  but  the  real 
reason  was  in  McClellan's  over-estimate  of  Lee's 
numbers.  He  always  saw  double  when  he  looked, 
rebelward.  That  night  we  slept  in  the  woods 
where  we  were  first  attacked.  I  saw  two  officers 
under  a  blanket,  and  turned  in  close  beside  them 
to  be  safe  in  one  direction  from  being  run  over 
in  the  night.  When  morning  dawned,  they  were 
so  quiet  I  looked  to  see  who  they  were,  but 

"  Broken  was  the  golden  bowl, 
The  spirit  flown  forever." 


CHAPTER  XVIII. 

"  The  eyes  of  women  and  lips  of  men 
Welcome  the  soldiers  of  battles  ten, 
Coming  back  to  their  homes  again 
Sobered,  but  not  dismayed." 

AKEKS. 

IT  was  discovered  early  in  the  morning  of  the 
19th  of  September  that  Lee's  army  had  crossed 
the  river  into  Virginia.  I  rode  by  request  with 
Generals  Franklin,  Smith,  and  Brooks  over  the 
route  of  our  charge  to  describe  it  to  them.  In 
a  barn  on  the  outskirts  of  Sharpsburg  I  found 
Corporal  Johnson  of  Company  Gr  with  his 
knee  shattered.  A  stray  surgeon  came  by, 
and  calling  him  in  to  amputate  the  leg,  I  had 
my  first  experience  in  tying  up  arteries ;  but 
poor  Johnson  died  on  our  hands. 

Colonel  Connor  came  up  and  joined  us, 
nearly  recovered  from  his  severe  illness.  We 
were  very  glad  to  see  him  again,  as  well  as  some 
chickens  he  brought  with  him.  I  had  fallen 
heir  to  Captain  Morse's  man,  Bennett,  who  was 
the  most  perfect  servant  and  the  most  expert 
forager  I  ever  saw.  Bennett  soon  had  the 
chickens  broiling,  and  our  spirits  rose  from  the 


UNDER  ARREST.  109 

depression  caused  by  our  losses  as  we  indulged 
once  more  in  a  civilized  meal. 

In  a  few  days  Colonel  Mason  returned,  and 
his  first  official  act  was  to  put  me  in  arrest, 
nominally  for  not  having  kept  him  informed  of 
the  doings  of  the  regiment,  but  I  did  n't  know 
where  he  was  and  "  had  other  fish  to  fry."  He 
soon  repented  and  released  me.  His  real  reason 
was  that  I  had  recommended  to  the  governor  a 
lot  of  sergeants  for  promotion.  I  also  caused  all 
the  vacancies  in  non-commissioned  officers  to  be 
filled,  and  had  written  on  each  warrant,  "  For 
especial  gallantry  at  Antietam."  This  had  a 
very  happy  effect.  The  success  of  a  regiment 
depends  more  on  good  non-commissioned  officers 
than  anything  else,  and  I  think  they  are  not 
always  selected  with  sufficient  care,  or  made 
enough  of.  My  idea  then  was  to  make  bravery 
the  only  test  for  promotion,  and  the  colonel  pre 
ferred  to  advance  men  of  cleanliness  and  fault 
less  equipment.  If  you  stimulate  the  pride  of  a 
brave  man  by  promotion,  he  is  almost  sure  to  do 
you  credit  unless  he  is  a  drunkard,  and  it  is 
singular,  too,  that  the  clean  and  careful  soldier 
is  also  pretty  sure  to  make  a  good  officer.  So 
both  the  colonel  and  I  may  have  been  right. 

On  the  4th  of  October,  to  our  great  joy,  we 
received  orders  for  home,  which  the  annexed 
letter  to  Governor  Washburn  will  explain  :  — 


110          FOLLOWING   THE   GREEK   CROSS. 

HEADQUARTERS   ARMY  OF  THE  POTOMAC, 
CAMP  NEAR  SHARPSBURO,  Mr>.,  October  4,  1862. 
To  His  Excellency  the   Governor  of  the  State 
of  Maine : 

SIR,  —  In  view  of  the  reduced  and  shattered 
condition  of  the  Seventh  Regiment  of  Maine 
Volunteers,  the  result  of  arduous  service  and 
exposure  during  the  campaigns  on  the  Peninsula 
and  in  Maryland,  I  made  on  the  2d  inst.  a 
special  application  to  the  War  Department  that 
the  regiment  should  be  sent  to  report  to  you  in 
Maine,  that  it  might  be  recruited  and  reorgan 
ized  under  your  personal  supervision.  I  yester 
day  received  the  necessary  authority,  as  you 
will  observe  by  the  copy  of  the  Special  Order 
No.  271  from  these  headquarters,  inclosed 
herein.  I  send  the  regiment  to  you  for  the 
purpose  indicated.  I  beg  that  when  this  pur 
pose  shall  have  been  accomplished,  that  the 
regiment  may  be  ordered  to  report  to  me  with 
all  practical  dispatch. 

In  returning  this  gallant  remnant  of  a  noble 
body  of  men,  whose  bravery  has  been  exhibited 
on  every  field  almost  in  the  campaigns  cited, 
to  the  State  whose  pride  it  is  to  have  sent  them 
forth,  I  feel  happy  that  it  has  been  in  my  power 
to  signify,  even  in  this  insufficient  manner,  my 
appreciation  of  their  services  and  of  their  value 
to  this  army,  and  I  will  venture  on  the  latter 


GENERAL    GEORGE    B.  MCCLELLAN 


WELCOMED  TO  MAINE  AGAIN.  Ill 

account  to  ask  your  Excellency's  best  endeavors 
to  fill  at  once  their  diminished  ranks,  that  I  may 
again  see  their   standard  in  the  Army  of   the 
Potomac.     I  am,  with  much  respect, 
Your  obedient  servant, 

(Signed)  GEO.  B.  McCLELLAN, 
Major-General,  U.  S.  A. 

A  leave  of  absence  for  the  winter !  Visions 
of  home,  of  sleigh  rides,  skating  parties,  and  the 
prettiest  girls  in  America,  in  our  opinion,  rose 
before  us. 

Our  ranks  had  been  filled  by  the  return  of  the 
convalescents,  so,  as  we  filed  out  of  camp  to  take 
the  cars  at  Hagerstown,  we  were  nearly  as  strong 
as  when  we  charged  Lee's  army. 

Two  pictures  of  the  homeward  journey  only  re 
main,  —  our  march,  the  whole  length  of  Broad 
way  through  cheering  crowds  and  the  booming  of 
saluting  cannon,  and  the  hearty  entertainment 
given  us  by  the  city  of  Boston.  George  S.  Hillard 
made  the  speech  of  welcome,  and  the  Board  of 
Aldermen  dined  the  officers  at  Parker's,  and 
our  men  at  the  Hancock  House.  A  paper  of 
that  date  says  of  Captain  Chamiing,  "  He  relates 
many  touching  and  heroic  incidents."  Some  of 
us  happened  to  overhear  him  telling  a  lot  of 
people  on  the  steps  of  the  Parker  House  that 
"  we  had  fifty  men  so  badly  wounded  at  Antietam 


112  FOLLOWING    THE    GREEK    CROSS. 

we  had  to  kill  them,"  and  he  was  chaffed  so,  he 
took  a  quick  leave  of  absence  to  his  home  at 
Kendall's  Mills. 

But  our  great  reception  was  to  come  when  we 
reached  Portland.  I  quote  from  the  "  Portland 
Press  "  :  "  Before  the  soldiers  left  the  cars,  ladies 
were  passing  at  the  side,  distributing  beautiful 
bouquets  among  them.  As  they  emerged  from 
the  station,  shouts  of  welcome  rent  the  air.  The 
cheering  was  most  vociferous,  and  salutes  were 
fired  from  field-pieces  near  by.  The  officers  and 
soldiers  looked  worn-out  with  hardships  and  pri 
vations  they  had  suffered." 

We  were  escorted  to  the  City  Hall  by  the  17th 
regulars,  the  23d,  25th,  and  27th  Maine  regi 
ments  under  the  command  of  General  Francis 
Fessenden,  and  by  all  the  civic  bodies.  When 
we  came  upon  the  platform,  I  saw  the  tall  form 
of  Speaker  Reed,  on  leave  from  the  Navy,  leading 
the  cheers.  Governor  Washburn  received  us,  and 
every  word  of  his  speech  went  to  our  hearts,  es 
pecially  the  following,  for  soldiers  are  as  suscep 
tible  to  flattery  as  other  people  :  "  It  was  in  a 
struggle  for  human  rights  on  that  dreadful  day 
at  Antietam  that  your  little  but  devoted  band, 
by  its  gallantry,  courage,  and  consecration,  made 
for  itself  a  name  that  shall  live  so  long  as  the 
memory  of  this  war  remains,  and  won  from  its 
division  commander  the  exalted  praise  that  it  had 


A    WINTER  AT  HOME.  113 

performed  the  '  most  gallant  feat  of  arms  he  had 
ever  seen  or  heard  of  or  read  in  history.'  ' 

And  then  we  were  surfeited  with  banquets  and 
kind  welcomings,  the  recollection  of  which  is  not 
dimmed  by  years.  In  the  festivities  of  that 
happy  winter  we  missed  the  great  battle  of  Fred- 
ericksburg  on  the  Rappahannock,  where  Burn- 
side's  lack  of  ability  caused  the  Army  of  the 
Potomac  a  useless  repulse  and  the  loss  of  twelve 
thousand  men.  Our  division  did  not  happen  to 
be  much  engaged,  so  they  did  not  lose  much,  but 
it  seemed  to  us  as  if  we  should  have  been  there  ; 
and  when  the  order  came  for  five  full  companies, 
and  the  lieutenant-colonel  and  major  to  take  the 
field,  we  were  ready  and  anxious  to  go. 

We  really  wanted  to  go  back,  and  why  men 
should  want  to  seek  out  hardship  and  danger,  I 
cannot  explain,  but  it  must  have  been  because  we 
had  not  yet  had  enough  of  it.  We  would  have 
hardly  felt  the  same  in  the  gloomy  days  of  Cold 
Harbor  yet  to  come.  I  had  told  Governor  Wash- 
burn  how  Sergeant  Henry  F.  Hill  had  got  me  out 
of  the  orchard  at  Antietam,  and  asked  for  his  pro 
motion.  To  my  joy,  the  warm-hearted  little  gov 
ernor  made  him  captain,  and  no  better  captain 
was  in  our  army  till  he  met  his  death  at  Spottsyl- 
vania.  Colonel  Mason  had  drilled  and  disci 
plined  his  men  in  fine  shape  that  winter,  so  when 
our  battalion  started  for  the  front,  we  were  very 


114  FOLLOWING   THE  GREEK   CROSS. 

proud  of  our  appearance,  though  the  parting  with 
sweethearts,  and  wives,  and  mothers  had  grieved 
us  sore. 

I  had  found  a  good  deal  of  secession  feeling 
in  my  native  town,  which  I  never  have  been  able 
to  understand.  They  were  all  kind  to  me  person 
ally,  but  why  any  Northern  man  or  woman  should 
sympathize  with  the  South  was  then,  and  is  now, 
a  riddle  impossible  of  solution.  We  knew  little 
of  politics  in  the  army,  and  men  of  all  shades  of 
opinion  were  united  with  the  single  thought  of 
putting  down  the  rebellion,  and  among  the  rank 
and  file  there  was  never  to  my  knowledge  any 
doubt  that  they  would  accomplish  it. 


CHAPTER  XIX. 

"  Nothing-  can  cover  his  high  fame  but  heaven : 

No  pyramids  set  off  his  memories, 
But  the  eternal  substance  of  his  greatness  : 
To  which  I  leave  him." 

BEAUMONT  AND  FLETCHER. 

AGAIN  in  the  comfortless  and  slow-moving 
trains  we  are  off  to  Washington ;  again  the 
sweet  and  quaint  Quaker  hospitality  of  Phila 
delphia  moves  our  hearts ;  and  again  we  disem 
bark  at  the  old  station  at  the  Capital.  The 
doors  of  our  favorite  Metropolitan  Hotel  are 
open  wide,  and,  among  the  throngs  of  people  in 
blue,  we  find  friend  after  friend.  Then  came 
the  damp  and  snowy  trip  to  Aquia  Creek,  and 
a  long  march  in  the  mud  to  get  to  the  old  bri 
gade.  There  we  found  a  right  royal  welcome. 

The  weather  and  the  roads  forbade  any  early 
opening  of  the  campaign.  It  was  now  February, 
and  at  least  three  months  must  elapse  before 
there  was  any  pressing  need  of  our  services. 
As  I  realized  this,  and  discovered  I  had  been  sent 
to  the  field  by  the  colonel's  own  sweet  will,  and 
as  five  companies  did  not  need  two  field  officers, 
I  began  not  to  like  it  much.  I  was  probably  a 


116  FOLLOWING   THE   GREEK  CROSS. 

little  spoiled  by  commanding  the  regiment  so 
long,  and,  as  I  was  an  entirely  unnecessary  func 
tionary  where  I  was,  I  concluded  to  take  no 
chances  of  serving  under  Colonel  M.  again.  I 
could  get  along  with  every  one  else,  but  not  with 
him.  I  will  not  detail  the  reasons.  He  had 
many  fine  qualities,  and  now  holds  high  rank 
in  the  regular  army,  but  an  irrepressible  conflict 
had  broken  out  between  us. 

General  William  B.  Franklin  had  been  re 
lieved  from  the  command  of  the  left  grand  di 
vision,  and  General  William  F.  Smith  reigned 
in  his  stead.  General  Franklin  had  fallen  under 
the  displeasure  of  the  authorities  in  Washington 
as  a  friend  of  McClellan.  As  a  commander  of 
troops  he  proved  himself  cool  and  brave,  and  of 
great  ability.  No  one  then  serving  in  the  army 
could  have  commanded  it  better.  Could  Mc- 
Clellan's  mantle  have  fallen  upon  him  instead 
of  upon  Burn  side,  there  would  have  been  a  dif 
ferent  "  making  of  splendid  names,"  but  he  was 
loyal  to  his  friend,  as  well  as  his  country,  and 
fate,  in  irony,  suffered  him,  like  Sedgwick,  to 
appear  before  the  country  as  a  scapegoat  for  an 
incompetent  commanding  general.  It  was  but 
for  a  moment,  however ;  like  Sedgwick,  he  was 
soon  acquitted  by  public  opinion.  Time  has 
spared  him  to  be  one  of  the  most  notable  living 
figures  of  the  war,  and  it  is  the  prayer  of  the 


GENERAL    W.   B.  FRANKLIN 


"BALDY"    SMITH.  117 

survivors  of  the  6th  corps  that  he  may  live  for 
many  years  their  most  distinguished  comrade, 
their  honored  and  trusted  leader. 

I  went  to  headquarters,  saw  General  "  Baldy  " 
Smith,  and  told  him  of  my  woes.  He  said, 
"I  am  disappointed  that  you  did  not  come 
back  in  command  of  a  Maine  regiment.  I  will 
detail  you  as  acting  inspector-general  on  my 
staff."  To  this  were  added  the  little  courtesies 
that  so  please  an  inferior  when  coming  from  one 
exalted  in  rank.  "  Baldy  "  Smith  was  a  kind 
man  to  his  subordinates,  and  had  the  soul  of  a 
great  soldier  in  him.  He  was,  at  times,  a  per 
fect  Ishmaelite  to  his  superior  officers,  as  they 
found  out  to  their  cost.  I  have  seen  him  handle 
his  division  in  a  way  that  Napoleon  would  have 
loved,  and  yet  sometimes,  when  the  pall  of  su 
perior  authority  fell  over  him,  he  was  a  dreadful 
kicker.  He  wrecked  the  chance  of  a  greater 
name  in  these  ways.  Still,  he  was  so  kind  to 
me  when  he  commanded  forty  thousand  men  — 
to  me,  still  a  boy  with  all  a  boy's  freshness  and 
belief  in  everybody  —  that  he  ranks  yet  in  my 
mind  among  the  greatest  commanders  of  the  war. 

With  great  delight,  I  assumed,  to  me,  the 
proud  position  of  Inspector-General  Left  Grand 
Division,  vice  Colonel  O.  E.  Babcock  absent 
on  leave  (afterward  of  Grant's  staff). 

I  first  went  into  a  little  mess  presided  over 


118  FOLLOWING   THE   GREEK  CROSS. 

by  one  Trundy,  excelling  in  soups  and  the 
broiled  birds  of  the  country.  Colonel  McMahon, 
adjutant-general;  Colonel  Tolles,  chief  quar 
termaster;  Colonel  Platt,  and  Captain  Platt 
his  brother,  were  my  chums.  Poor  Tolles ! 
killed  after  he  had  surrendered,  by  Mosby's 
men  in  the  later  days,  —  so  sweet-natured  and 
so  able  !  McMahon  soon  became  my  idol.  Born 
of  Irish  ancestry,  and  wonderfully  educated  by 
the  Jesuits,  of  high  and  chivalrous  aims,  he 
was  the  Chevalier  Bayard  of  the  corps,  and 
wherever  one  of  the  6th  corps  now  dwells, 
does  he  not  remember  and  love  McMahon? 
Colonel  Platt  was  an  old  regular,  and  I  don't 
remember  what  unkind  fate  prevented  his 
being  a  major-general,  but  he  was  not,  and 
he  has  gone  where  it  is  said  faithful  and  mod 
est  service  is  recorded.  Captain  Platt  had  the 
forceful  ability  which  should  have  commanded 
a  higher  rank,  and  he  has  since  made  his  mark 
as  a  member  of  Congress  from  Virginia,  and 
as  a  great  industrial  pioneer  in  the  far  West. 
All  these  gentlemen  were  very  kind  to  the  new 
comer,  and  happiness  came  to  dwell  within  my 
tent.  Soon  an  order  came  abolishing  the  left 
grand  division,  and  ordering  General  John 
Sedgwick  to  command  the  6th  corps.  I  began 
to  tremble  for  fear  I  would  be  ordered  back 
to  my  regiment :  it  was  not  because  I  loved 


IN  CLOVER  AT  LAST.  119 

the  regiment  less,  however.  One  day  a  grizzled, 
bluff  major-general  rode  up  to  our  quarters 
with  an  aide-de-camp  as  handsome  as  Romeo, 
and  General  S.  dismounted  and  disappeared 
in  General  Smith's  tent.  I  took  the  bull  by 
the  horns  immediately  and  told  Captain  W.  my 
tale,  and  was  detailed  the  next  day  as  provost 
marshal  general  of  the  corps.  This  office  I 
found  on  inquiry  was  a  very  important  one.  I 
had  charge  of  the  police  and  discipline  of 
twenty  thousand  men,  and  of  all  matters  of 
trade,  secret  intelligence,  home  communication, 
and  also  of  civil  relations  with  people  within 
our  lines. 


CHAPTER  XX. 

"  Seeking1  the  bubble  reputation 
Even  in  the  cannon's  mouth." 

SHAKESPEARE. 

THE  winter  of  '62  and  '63  was  marked  by 
the  hard  work  of  organizing  and  improving 
the  army.  Constant  drills,  reviews,  and  in 
spections  followed  each  other.  Our  camp  was 
at  White  Oak  Church,  on  the  high  grounds 
overlooking  the  Rappahannock  and  the  distant 
spires  of  Fredericksburg.  This  little  church 
was  a  small,  plain,  unpainted  structure,  devoid 
of  steeple  or  belfry,  such  an  edifice  as  that  in 
which  "  the  blind  preacher "  officiated,  but  it 
gave  its  name  to  an  important  post  office  that 
winter.  The  coming  of  the  mail  was  the  most 
notable  event  in  camp  life,  and  we  considered 
Jimmy  Williams,  the  mail  carrier,  about  the 
best-looking  man  in  those  parts  ;  he  was  even 
better  looking  than  the  paymaster.  Ex-Gov 
ernor  Robie  was  our  paymaster  all  through 
the  war,  and  when  he  came  to  camp  the  fatted 
calf  of  our  simple  hospitality  was  killed,  fresh 
pine  boughs  were  strewn  for  his  repose,  and 
we  received  the  welcome  greenbacks  at  his 


A  MILITARY  PAGEANT.  121 

hands,  thinking  little  about  their  market  value 
so  long  as  they  defrayed  mess  or  sutler's  bills. 

But  the  time  was  drawing  near  for  action; 
the  red  muddy  roads  were  drying  up,  the  dis 
cipline  and  morale  of  the  army  were  about  per 
fect,  confidence  in  Hooker  was  unbounded,  and 
when  we  moved  out  of  our  dismantled  winter 
homes  we  felt  that  the  war  was  going  to  be 
ended  this  time. 

And  what  an  interesting  drama  war  seemed 
to  me  as  my  vision  of  it  unfolded  from  the 
staff-officer's  standpoint.  No  more  confinement 
to  the  dusty  column,  no  more  ignorance  of 
what  is  going  on,  but  all  the  business  possessed 
of  interest  or  pageantry  was  mine ;  and  it  had 
its  drawbacks  too,  for  while  the  7th  Maine  were 
in  quiet  bivDuac,  we  were  riding  back  and  forth 
all  night  carrying  messages  to  old  General 
Benham  of  the  engineers  who  was  laying  the 
pontoon  bridges  over  the  river  in  darkness,  fog, 
and  musketry  fire.  In  the  morning  our  corps 
and  the  1st  crossed  with  just  enough  oppo 
sition  to  make  some  excitement,  and  when  the 
sun  cleared  away  the  fog,  the  view  of  some 
fifty  thousand  men,  the  distant  skirmishers  in 
touch  with  the  enemy,  our  magnificent  batteries 
going  into  position  as  if  by  clockwork,  and  all 
the  banners  of  the  Greek  Cross  flaunting  in  the 
breeze,  made  a  picture  that  has  survived  many 


122          FOLLOWING   THE   GREEK   CROSS. 

years.  We  know  now  that  Jackson  begged  to 
be  allowed  to  attack  us,  and  promised  Lee  to 
drive  us  into  the  river,  but  he  rode  along  his 
lines,  got  a  good  look,  changed  his  mind,  and 
went  gunning  for  the  llth  corps. 

The  1st  corps  now  left  to  join  Hooker's 
main  army  at  Chancellorsville,  and  all  that  day 
we  waited  expecting  an  attack,  but  none  came. 
Some  of  us  turned  in  at  dark  in  a  ruined  house 
by  the  river,  and  were  waked  up  near  midnight 
to  find  our  orders  had  come.  General  Sedgwick 
was  directed  to  move  up  the  river  to  Fredericks- 
burg,  take  the  Heights,  and  to  move  out  some 
fifteen  miles  from  Fredericksburg  to  attack  Lee's 
rear  by  daylight.  We  were  about  four  miles 
from  Fredericksburg,  the  corps  was  in  line  of 
battle  facing  the  enemy,  and  it  was  pitch-dark. 
However,  as  soon  as  the  orders  could  be  distrib 
uted  to  the  divisions,  we  got  under  way  and 
moved  up  the  river  road,  with  occasional  halts 
for  the  troops  to  catch  up,  and  other  halts  to  at 
tack  and  drive  away  the  felt  but  unseen  enemy, 
and  I  remember  how  queer  the  skirmish  fire 
looked  in  the  mist  and  darkness.  I  had  ar 
ranged  my  business  of  provost  marshal  so  my 
presence  in  the  rear  was  not  needed,  and  had 
asked  General  Sedgwick  for  permission  to  serve 
as  one  of  his  aides-de-camp.  This  he  granted 
with  a  pleased  twinkle  in  his  eye,  and  I  look  on 


READY  FOR   THE  ASSAULT.  123 

it  now  as  my  proudest  distinction  that  I  was 
enabled  to  so  serve  with  him  while  he  lived. 
Toward  daylight,  just  as  the  mists  were  begin 
ning  to  look  ghastly  in  the  coming  light,  the 
head  of  our  column  reached  Fredericksburg,  and 
pushed  through  the  edge  of  the  town  toward  the 
Heights.  We  were  expected  to  have  taken  them, 
and  to  have  been  some  fifteen  miles  farther  on 
at  this  time  by  army  headquarters,  but  they  were 
expecting  more  than  could  be  done,  had  General 
Early  been  elsewhere. 

He  was  not  only  there,  but  extremely  obstinate 
about  getting  away  from  there,  as  we  found  to 
our  cost.  It  was  impossible  to  tell  whether  the 
Heights  were  occupied  by  the  enemy  or  not, 
on  account  of  the  fog  through  which,  once  in  a 
while,  the  sounds  were  ominous.  Two  regi 
ments  moved  off  toward  the  hill  in  line,  and 
they  were  soon  swallowed  up  in  the  mist  into 
which  the  general  and  all  of  us  were  eagerly 
peering. 

Then  came  the  familiar  whistling  of  bullets 
about  us  and  a  crackling  fire  in  the  unknown 
beyond,  and  then  the  sudden  lifting  of  the 
watery  curtain  for  an  instant  revealed  to  us  the 
intrenched  lines  full  of  men,  and  our  two  regi 
ments  giving  back  with  heavy  loss. 

"For  God's  sake,  rally  those  men,"  broke 
from  the  general's  lips  as  he  pulled  his  slouch 


124  FOLLOWING   THE    GREEK   CROSS. 

hat  lower  over  his  eyes.  With  the  best  speed 
of  good  horses,  riding  up  the  hill  where  Burn- 
side's  thousands  fell,  some  of  us  were  with  our 
breaking  line  in  less  time  than  it  takes  to  tell 
it,  and  soon  had  them  re-formed  behind  a  favor 
able  piece  of  ground.  The  experience  was  not 
pleasant,  however,  of  being  fired  at  personally 
by  as  many  Southern  marksmen  as  tcok  a  no 
tion.  I  can  see  Kent  now,  his  whiskers  stream 
ing,  his  blue  overcoat  up  round  his  ears,  and 
his  revolver  brandished  in  the  air.  He  was 
wounded  soon  after  in  not  half  so  hard  a  place 
as  this. 

The  mist  fell  again,  and  it  was  quite  friendly 
to  us  this  time,  for  we  withdrew  the  line,  and 
then  every  effort  was  made  to  get  the  corps  up 
in  position  for  an  assault,  which  was  the  only 
thing  left  to  do. 

It  was  not  a  cheering  prospect,  for  the  works 
before  us  were  the  same  Burn  side  had  failed  to 
take  with  three  corps.  They  were  full  of  men 
now,  and  there  were  no  more  behind  them  then. 
Till  nearly  ten  o'clock  we  rode  back  and  forth 
with  orders ;  then  every  one  seemed  to  be  in 
place  and  have  his  instructions.  We  had  our 
headquarters  in  a  yard  on  one  of  the  streets  in 
town  looking  up  toward  the  Heights.  The  sev 
eral  commanders  had  received  their  orders 
from  General  Sedgwick  in  person,  and  had 


A   GOVERNMENT  CONTRACT.  125 

started  to  join  their  commands,  when  the  first 
shot  from  Marye's  Hill  was  fired.  Afterward 
I  asked  the  captain  of  the  New  Orleans  Wash 
ington  artillery  who  fired  it,  and  he  said,  "  Cor 
poral  -  — ,  the  best  shot  in  the  Southern  army, 
sir." 

There  was  a  Napoleon  gun  in  the  street :  this 
it  stripped  of  cannoneers  ;  then  it  killed  a  major 
of  artillery  near  by ;  killed  McMahon's  horse  as 
he  was  mounting  ;  passed  me  by  ;  put  two  holes 
through  Kent's  arm  and  eleven  through  his  over 
coat  as  he  lay  asleep  in  the  yard,  and  wounded 
several  men  and  horses  in  our  cavalry  escort 
behind.  So  much  damage  could  a  well-directed 
spherical  case  inflict.  Henry  Farrar  of  Bangor 
had  just  joined  our  staff  as  a  volunteer  aide, 
and  as  soon  as  we  were  all  mounted,  which  the 
spherical  case  had  somewhat  hastened,  General 
Sedgwick  said,  "Now,  young  gentlemen,  here 
is  a  chance  for  you  to  distinguish  yourselves  by 
leading  the  storming  columns."  Farrar  started 
at  once,  new  horse,  uniform,  and  all,  but  I  pur 
sued  him  and  told  him  the  general  was  joking, 
and  he  ever  after  gave  me  the  credit  of  saving 
his  life.  It  is  said  of  old  Colonel  Burnham  of 
the  6th  Maine,  who  commanded  the  light  divi 
sion,  to  whom  was  given  the  post  of  honor  in 
the  assault,  that  when  he  left  General  Sedgwick 
and  rode  down  to  his  command,  who  were  lying 


126          FOLLOWING   THE   GREEK  CROSS. 

in  ditches  and  other  cover  outside  the  town,  he 
said,  "  Boys,  I  have  got  a  government  contract." 
u  What  is  it,  Colonel  ?  "  came  from  all  along  his 
line.  "  One  thousand  rebels,  potted  and  salted, 
and  got  to  have 'em  in  less  than  five  minutes. 
Forward !  guide  centre !  "  He  got  them. 


CHAPTER  XXI. 

"  Lo !  the  Ammonites  thicken  and  onward  they  come." 

MOTHEKWELL. 

"  A  bed  nor  comfortless,  nor  new 
To  him  who  took  his  rest  whene'er 
The  hour  arrived,  no  matter  where." 

BYRON. 

WHEN  the  two  assaulting  columns  and  the  line 
of  battle  moved  upon  Marye's  Heights,  I  started 
to  go  up  with  the  right  attack,  which  was  on  the 
county  road,  and  was  composed  of  four  regi 
ments  in  column  of  fours.  Colonel  Spear  and 
the  61st  Pennsylvania  were  in  the  lead  and  re 
ceived  nearly  the  whole  fire  from  the  enemy's 
intrenchments  and  batteries.  Colonel  Spear 
was  killed,  and  the  loss  was  so  heavy  and  sudden 
that  the  column  was  checked  and  thrown  into 
confusion  in  the  narrow  road,  down  which  grape- 
shot  seemed  to  be  searching  for  everybody. 
We  all  worked  hard  to  get  into  shape  again, 
and  went  forward,  when,  to  my  joy,  I  saw  that 
the  stars  and  stripes  were  planted  on  the  enemy's 
works,  and  beyond  them  could  see  butts  of  mus 
kets  whirling  in  the  air  where  the  6th  Maine 


128  FOLLOWING   THE   GREEK  CROSS. 

and  5th  Wisconsin  were  engaged  in  a  brief 
hand  to  hand  fight.  The  green  slope  was  dotted 
all  over  with  still  forms  in  blue,  and  the  pris 
oners  were  streaming  down  the  hill  in  hundreds. 
Eemembering  it  was  my  duty  as  provost  mar 
shal  to  take  care  of  the  prisoners,  I  soon  had 
some  fifteen  hundred  collected  in  town.  Among 
them  were  the  officers  of  the  Washington  ar 
tillery,  who  had  very  fine  horses  that  they  par 
ticularly  commended  to  my  care.  I  thought  I 
took  pains  to  take  care  of  them,  as  I  left  them  in 
good  hands  in  the  town,  but  they  were  recaptured 
the  next  day.  It  was  in  a  high  state  of  exhilara 
tion  that  we  started  forward,  for  with  about  six 
thousand  men  we  had  taken  the  place  Burnside 
had  hurled  so  many  divisions  against,  in  vain, 
the  preceding  December.  Its  defenders  were 
about  the  same  in  number  too,  for  the  earthworks 
were  full  on  both  occasions.  We  moved  on  south 
west  toward  Chancellorsville  several  miles,  meet 
ing  opposition  occasionally,  and  listening  anx 
iously  for  the  sound  of  firing  from  the  main 
army.  None  was  heard,  however,  and  near  Sa 
lem  Church  the  Confederates  were  found  in  force. 
We  attacked  with  varying  success,  but  finally 
were  repulsed  by  constantly  increasing  numbers, 
and  darkness  fell  before  our  attack  could  be  re 
newed.  An  ominous  rumbling  of  wheels  was 
the  only  sound  that  broke  the  stillness.  This 


AN  ILL-BODING  NIGHT.  129 

showed  that  the  enemy  were  diligently  reinfor 
cing  from  Lee's  army,  which  was  between  us  and 
Hooker,  and  the  entire  absence  of  all  sounds  of 
battle  or  any  communication  from  Chancellors- 
ville  was  most  strange  and  ill  boding.  General 
Sedgwick  sat  all  night  by  the  roadside  just  be 
hind  Williston's  battery,  and  the  corps  was  faced 
in  three  directions,  forward,  to  our  left,  and  back 
toward  Fredericksburg,  as  the  enemy  had  moved 
in  behind  us  and  reoccupied  the  Heights.  Oh 
for  the  sound  of  one  gun  off  toward  the  Wilder 
ness,  where  three  fourths  of  our  army  were !  It 
was  so  evident  that  we  were  being  surrounded 
by  greatly  superior  forces.  Morning  broke  gray 
and  pale.  We  could,  perhaps,  get  communica 
tion  with  Hooker  by  Banks' s  Ford,  off  to  our 
right  and  rear  where  the  engineers  under  Gen 
eral  Benham  were  guarding  the  bridges  they  had 
laid.  Colonel  Tompkins  was  sent  there  with  a 
message.  He  did  not  return.  Captain  Farrar 
was  sent.  He  came  back  to  us  some  months 
after  by  way  of  Richmond  and  exchange.  Then 
General  Sedgwick  in  impatience  sent  me.  I  did 
not  take  the  road,  but  took  a  beeline  across 
country,  most  fortunately,  for  I  was  back  in 
an  hour,  having  seen  no  wandering  rebels. 

In  the  forenoon  Early  attacked  our  second 
(Howe's)  division  from  the  direction  of  Freder 
icksburg.  The  7th  Maine  and  49th  New  York 


130  FOLLOWING   THE   GREEK   CROSS. 

were  on  the  skirmish  line  and  repulsed  the  attack, 
taking  two  hundred  prisoners,  and  Corporal  Bos 
ton  of  the  7th  took  the  flag  of  the  58th  Virginia. 
The  day  wore  on  slowly,  and  still  no  firing  from 
Chancellors ville.  Word  came  from  Hooker  "  to 
look  to  the  safety  of  the  corps,"  that  he  "  was 
too  far  off  to  direct."  The  enemy's  forces  were 
evidently  still  increasing  and  moving  around  us. 
We  did  not  know  then  that  General  Lee  in 
person  was  marshaling  McLaw's,  Early's,  and 
Anderson's  divisions,  to  make  a  crushing  attack 
upon  us  from  the  side  of  Fredericksburg,  but  we 
knew  an  attack  was  coming  soon  from  somewhere. 
In  the  afternoon  I  went  over  to  see  the  regi 
ment,  and  found  them  in  the  first  line  of  Howe's 
division.  I  was  sitting  on  the  ground  with  Col 
onel  Connor  and  Channing,  talking  over  the 
chances  of  the  fight,  for  we  were  skirmishing  in 
three  directions,  and,  pulling  out  my  watch,  I 
said,  "  It  is  quarter  of  five ;  if  they  are  coming  it 
will  be  before  five  o'clock,"  when  the  rebel  yell 
broke  from  the  woods  far  in  front,  and  the  whole 
hillside  was  alive  with  men.  It  was  a  gallant 
sight !  They  came  on  in  three  lines,  about  16,000 
strong,  and  were  so  near  that  regimental,  brigade, 
and  division  commanders  with  their  staffs  could 
be  plainly  seen.  Our  brigade  was  commanded 
then  by  General  Neill,  called  "  Beau  Neill  "  in  the 
old  army.  I  saw  him  draw  his  little  sword  as  de- 


_J 


CAPTAIN    H.  \V.  FARRAR,  A.  D.  C. 


LEE  BEATEN  OFF.  131 

liberately  and  gracefully  as  if  at  West  Point  on 
parade,  and  then  make  the  dreadful  mistake  of 
giving  the  order  "  Forward  !  3d  brigade  !  "  We 
were  in  a  beautiful  position  on  the  hillside,  but 
down  we  charged  into  the  ravines  below  that  had 
already  broken  the  formation  of  our  numerous 
enemy.  I  took  the  right  of  the  regiment,  and  it 
was  soon  cut  in  two,  we  going  down  one  ravine 
and  Colonel  Connor  down  the  other.  General 
Neill  and  staff  were  all  hors  de  combat  and  Col 
onel  Connor  wounded  in  less  time  than  it  takes 
to  tell  it,  and  the  little  brigade  had  smashed 
itself  to  pieces  against  ten  times  its  numbers. 
Our  batteries  were  firing  over  our  heads,  and  the 
smoke  obscured  everything,  but  I  saw  the  trend 
of  the  attack  was  toward  our  left  and  Banks's 
Ford. 

As  the  smoke  lifted,  I  saw  rebels  near  me  011 
both  sides,  and  moved  by  a  desire  to  avoid  cap 
ture,  and  also  to  warn  our  batteries  of  their  dan 
ger,  I  ran  my  horse  to  the  rear,  and  was  obliged 
to  pass  through  liigby's  battery,  where  the  smoke 
obscured  everything  so  I  could  not  tell  if  I  were 
running  into  their  fire  or  not.  I  remember  this 
as  a  particularly  unpleasant  sensation,  but  for 
tunately  for  me  I  got  between  the  guns  unscathed 
in  time  for  the  battery  to  limber  up  and  away,  and 
to  my  joy  I  saw  our  second  line,  the  Vermonters, 
were  as  firm  as  a  rock,  and  that  the  attack  was 


132  FOLLOWING   THE    GREEK   CROSS. 

wearing  itself  out  on  them  and  on  the  5th  Wis 
consin  and  other  troops  to  their  left  just  brought 
over  by  Colonel  McMahon.  As  so  many  of  the 
enemy  seemed  to  be  going  toward  Banks's  Ford, 
our  only  line  of  retreat,  I  thought  the  general 
ought  to  know  it,  and  went  to  him  as  fast  as  my 
horse  could  go,  hatless  and  breathless.  He  and 
General  Newton  were  standing  in  the  road  and 
moved  toward  me  as  I  came  in  sight,  and  the 
general  asked  me  at  once,  "  What  force  is 
attacking  us  ?  "  "  About  as  many  as  our  corps 
showed  on  the  last  review,"  said  I,  and  General 
Newton  smiled  an  incredulous  smile.  General 
Sedgwick  then  directed  me  to  General  Wheat- 
on's  brigade  and  told  me  to  conduct  him  to 
reinforce  Howe.  I  did  so,  and  we  got  there  in 
time  to  fire  a  few  shots,  but  the  great  attack 
had  spent  its  force,  was  fairly  repulsed,  and  we 
had  a  large  number  of  prisoners.  This  attack 
had  about  as  many  men  in  it  as  Pickett's  attack 
at  Gettysburg,  and  was  directed  by  General  Lee 
in  person.  Why  it  did  not  succeed  is  hard  to 
tell.  It  was  certainly  gallantly  resisted  and  de 
feated  by  a  third  of  its  numbers.  The  ground 
over  which  it  was  directed  was  very  much 
broken  with  ravines,  and  I  think  the  different 
generals  may  have  tried  to  reorganize  their 
disjointed  commands  until  it  was  too  late  to 
go  on,  on  account  of  the  darkness  falling.  It  is 


OVER   THE  RIVER  AGAIN.  133 

amusing  now  to  read  the  reports  of  the  Confed 
erate  generals  engaged,  and  see  how  unanimous 
they  seem  to  have  been  in  the  idea  that  they 
then  and  there  broke  us  and  drove  us  over 
Banks's  Ford,  when  the  only  broken  troops  on 
our  side  were  Neill's  brigade,  smashed  like  a 
pitcher  thrown  against  a  rock,  by  charging  nine 
rebel  brigades,  and  when  some  hours  later  the 
corps  marched  leisurely  to  Banks's  Ford  in  obe 
dience  to  an  order  of  General  Hooker,  and 
crossed  there  with  all  its  property  on  wheels. 

The  nights  about  that  time  were  all  foggy  and 
misty,  and  this  was  no  exception.  When  we 
got  down  near  the  pontoon  bridges,  we  found 
the  enemy  thought  he  had  their  range  and  was 
dropping  shells  toward  them  from  several  direc 
tions.  The  firing  was  like  so  many  graceful 
curves  of  rockets,  but  not  a  bridge,  animal, 
or  man  was  hit.  Captain  Pierce,  our  signal 
officer,  and  I  crossed  the  bridge  together,  and, 
absolutely  weary,  about  two  in  the  morning  we 
found  a  place  in  the  woods  to  hide  for  a  nap. 
No  sooner  were  we  stowed  away  comfortably 
than  the  horrid  screech  of  a  shell  would  seem 
to  be  searching  for  us,  and  Pierce  would  get  up 
on  his  elbow  and  say,  "  Tom,  where  did  that 
strike  ?  "  and  then  we  would  move.  How  many 
times  we  moved,  I  don't  know,  but  we  seemed 
to  be  still  moving  in  our  dreams  when  we  awoke 


134  FOLLOWING   THE   GREEK   CROSS. 

after  daylight  in  a  pouring  rainstorm  and  found 
much  of  the  corps  had  marched  over  us  and 
taken  all  our  little  movables,  as  mementos, 
doubtless.  Both  we  and  our  horses,  wet,  hun 
gry,  tired,  and  wretched,  chanced  on  a  Samari 
tan  when  we  found  Dr.  Ash  at  his  hospital. 

The  disastrous  campaign  of  Chancellorsville 
was  over,  and  we  soon  learned  that  Hooker  was 
trying  to  make  Sedgwick  and  the  6th  corps  his 
scapegoat,  when  we  had  lost  nearly  as  many 
men,  and  taken  more  prisoners,  colors,  and  guns 
than  all  the  rest  of  the  army  together. 


CHAPTEK  XXII. 

"  On  his  bold  visage  middle  age 
Had  slightly  pressed  its  signet  sage." 

SCOTT. 

IT  was  with  chagrin  and  disappointment 
that  we  tramped  back  in  the  mud  to  our  old 
camps  at  White  Oak  Church,  and  proceeded  to 
get  them  into  living  shape  again.  Tents  were 
soon  stretched  over  the  stockades,  fresh  ever 
greens  were  cut,  and  we  began  to  take  stock  of 
our  blessings  and  misfortunes.  Hope,  never 
taking  a  long  flight  from  youth,  came  again  on  the 
balmy  air  of  the  Southern  spring.  What  if 
Hooker  had  lost  his  head  ?  What  if  the  llth 
corps  had  failed  to  stand  the  attack  of  three 
times  their  numbers?  What  if  Lee  with  half 
its  force  had  compelled  the  Army  of  the  Poto 
mac  to  recross  the  river,  —  were  not  the  shot-torn 
banners  of  the  6th  corps  waving  as  proudly  as 
ever?  Who  now  or  hereafter,  friend  or  foe, 
could  criticise  our  fighting  or  our  fame?  The 
fortified  works  of  the  enemy  had  been  stormed  at 
the  point  of  the  bayonet ;  prisoners,  guns,  and 
colors  had  been  taken,  and  an  assault  of  half 
Lee's  army,  led  by  Lee  in  person,  had  been 


136  FOLLOWING   THE   GREEK  CROSS. 

repelled  by  half  our  corps !  This  was  glory 
enough  for  our  young  hearts,  and  we  began  to 
be  eager  for  the  time  when  we  could  meet  the 
enemy  again,  could  it  only  be  under  a  general 
who  equaled  the  ability  on  the  other  side. 

I  had  guards  at  most  of  the  houses  down  the 
Rappahannock  for  ten  miles  outside  our  lines, 
and  it  was  delightful  to  visit  them  again  after 
a  keen  morning's  gallop,  and  to  be  courteously 
greeted  sometimes  by  ladies  of  Virginia's  first 
families  who  could  appreciate  our  care  of  their 
property.  This  was  a  debatable  ground,  but 
the  Southern  soldiers  knew  our  peaceful  errands 
and  never  molested  us.  Sometimes,  while  riding 
on  the  river-bank,  a  tall,  lank  rebel  dressed  in 
"butternut"  would  step  out  from  his  picket 
post  in  the  woods  across  the  river  and  gravely 
present  arms,  while  I  scrupulously  returned  the 
salute.  Sometimes  another  would  "draw  a 
bead  "  on  me  in  joke,  but  a  pleasant  salutation 
always  brought  the  gun  down.  At  such  times 
it  was  easy  to  realize  that  they  were  our  fellow- 
countrymen,  if  misguided ;  but  in  the  press  of 
battle  they  were  f oemen,  —  nothing  more. 

At  this  camp  we  built  of  evergreen  fence  a 
riding  course,  and  under  the  guidance  of  Cap 
tain  Beaumont  of  our  staff,  afterwards  instructor 
in  horsemanship  at  West  Point,  and  lately 
colonel  of  the  4th  regular  cavalry,  some  of 


CAMP  SPORTS.  137 

us  passed  hours  daily  shooting  at  a  mark, 
or  cutting  with  the  sabre  at  mimic  heads, 
when  at  full  speed.  With  our  horses  on  the 
run  we  could  pick  up  a  handkerchief  from  the 
ground,  and  we  emulated  all  the  tricks  of  the 
frontiersman  or  the  Mexican  vaquero.  This 
practice  stood  us  in  good  stead  often  in  the 
years  of  fighting  that  were  to  follow.  General 
Sedgwick,  always  kind  and  indulgent  as  a  father 
to  the  young  men  on  his  staff,  sympathized  in 
all  our  sports,  and  his  presence  made  the  game 
or  the  race,  or  even  the  cockfight,  more  inter 
esting.  This  year,  while  the  survivors  of  these 
young  men  were,  on  Memorial  Day,  reverently 
kneeling  by  his  grave  at  Cornwall  Hollow,  I 
read  upon  the  tombstone,  — 

"JOHN   SEDGWICK, 

KILLED  MAY   9,  1864, 

AGED   51   YEARS." 

—  and  I  remember  how  we  used  to  think  of 
him  as  "old  Uncle  John."  Fifty-one  years  does 
not  seem  old,  does  it,  comrades? 

The  Southern  army,  reinforced  and  swelling 
with  honest  pride,  were  even  now  stretching 
out  to  their  left  toward  the  Blue  Ridge,  and 
it  was  the  inception  of  another  invasion  of  the 
North.  We  were  ordered  to  lay  the  pontoon 


138          FOLLOWING   THE   GREEK   CROSS. 

bridges  and  cross  the  river  again  to  see  who 
was  left  over  there.  It  was  done,  and  for  days 
we  went  through  all  the  actual  work  of  warfare 
with  but  little  fighting.  There  was  a  good  deal  of 
lively  cannonading,  and  I  remember  the  rebels 
had  a  Whitworth  gun  that  they  fired  from  such 
a  distance  that  neither  its  smoke  nor  explosion 
could  be  perceived,  and  its  presence  was  only  an 
nounced  by  the  scream  of  the  steel  projectile  as 
it  went  whistling  by.  Farrar  said  one  day, 
"  General,  I  would  like  to  know  if  there  is  any 
thing  you  are  afraid  of."  The  general  replied, 
"  I  don't  like  these  Whitworth  bolts." 

It  was  now  demonstrated  that  A.  P.  Hill's 
corps  were  alone  at  Frederieksburg,  that  Jackson 
was  in  the  Valley,  and  Longstreet  following  after, 
so  then  began  another  series  of  marches  toward 
Washington  and  Maryland.  Here  I  learned 
one  of  the  pleasant  little  duties  that  sometimes 
fall  to  a  staff  officer's  lot,  after  perhaps  twelve 
hours  in  the  saddle,  when  the  route  happens  to 
be  through  a  friendly  country.  The  troops  are 
going  wearily  into  camp.  "  Major,  we  march 
to  Frying  Pan  Shoals  to-morrow,  about  twenty 
miles  :  this  map  is  wretched.  Go  there,  acquaint 
yourself  with  the  road  and  the  best  places  to  halt 
for  water,  and  be  back  here  by  daybreak."  Then 
on  another  horse,  through  the  dark  woods, 
through  the  blinding  rain,  with  a  colored  man 


STAFF  DUTY.  139 

for  guide,  nothing  but  blackness  visible,  which 
is  well,  for  no  guerrillas  will  be  abroad,  I  press 
on  all  the  lonely  night  and  take  my  place  in  the 
marching  column  again  at  dawn,  to  traverse 
again  the  same  road.  Staff  duty  was  no  sine 
cure,  though  no  doubt  it  seemed  so  to  our  bre 
thren  of  the  line,  as  we  dashed  by  on  good  horses, 
sometimes  guilty  of  a  "boiled  shirt,"  and  often 
attaining  a  square  meal  at  a  farmhouse  distant 
from  the  column,  while  our  orderlies  kept  watch 
and  ward.  But  our  duty  was  never  finished. 
When  the  regimental  officers  were  lying  down  by 
the  fire  and  smoking  a  last  pipe  before  turning 
in,  we  were  on  our  way  to  some  other  corps  or 
to  army  headquarters  to  get  or  give  information, 
or  we  were  making  ready  in  various  ways  for 
the  march  and  fight  to-morrow.  With  all  this,  I 
look  back  on  it  as  a  charming  experience.  Its 
sorry  features  are  dimmed  by  distance,  and  of 
all  my  earlier  years  it  is  difficult  to  imagine  any 
more  enjoyable  than  these  spent  on  the  staff  of 
the  6th  army  corps. 

We  skirted  Washington  on  our  march  north 
ward,  and  the  adventures  of  those  who  skipped 
off  and  went  there  were  celebrated  in  song  and 
story.  I  visited  at  Fairfax  the  camps  of  some 
new  Maine  regiments,  and  received  a  most  cor 
dial  greeting  from  Colonels  Francis  Fessenden 
and  T.  H.  Hubbard. 


140          FOLLOWING   THE    GREEK   CROSS. 

We  crossed  into  Maryland  at  Edward's  Ferry. 
About  this  time  the  command  of  the  army  had 
been  offered  to  General  Sedgwick,  but  he  de 
clined  it,  advising  the  choice  of  either  Meade  or 
Reynolds.  When  the  news  came  that  Meade 
was  selected,  I  remember  the  general  struck  his 
spurs  into  his  gigantic  and  phlegmatic  steed  and 
led  us  at  quite  a  pace  for  some  time.  Whatever 
emotion  he  may  have  felt  on  the  subject  was 
vented  in  this  way.  His  only  regret,  however, 
was  on  our  account,  for  we  were  all  ambitious  to 
be  on  the  staff  of  the  army.  I  was  sent  to  Fred 
erick  City  with  dispatches,  and  arrived  just  in 
time  to  see  General  Hooker  turn  over  the  com 
mand  to  General  Meade.  Hooker  never  ap 
peared  better  than  on  this  occasion.  He  ad 
mirably  became  the  high  position  he  was  laying 
down  on  account  of  a  vagary  of  the  military 
crank  who  happened  to  command  the  armies  of 
the  United  States.  Halleck  had  refused  him  the 
garrison  of  Harper's  Ferry,  then  utterly  useless 
for  anything  else.  After  Meade  took  command, 
it  was  given  him  without  question.  Meade  in 
his  well-worn  uniform,  splashed  with  mud,  with 
his  glasses,  and  his  nervous  and  earnest  air, 
looked  more  like  a  learned  pundit  than  a  soldier, 
but  he  at  once  informed  himself  of  the  position 
of  the  army  and  took  the  reins  in  that  business 
like  fashion  he  so  well  maintained  till  the  end. 


CHAPTER  XXIII. 

"  And  his  low  headcrest,  just  one  sharp  ear  bent  back 
For  my  voice,  and  the  other  pricked  out  on  his  track ; 
And  one  eye's  black  intelligence,  —  ever  that  glance 
O'er  its  white  edge  at  me,  his  own  master,  askance ; 
And  the  thick  heavy  spume  flakes,  which  aye  and  anon 
His  fierce  lips  shook  upward  in  galloping  on." 

ROBERT  BROWNING. 

ON  the  30th  of  June,  1863,  the  6th  army 
corps  reached  the  pretty  little  town  of  Man 
chester,  Md.,  distant  about  twenty  miles  from 
the  headquarters  of  the  army,  then  at  Taney- 
town,  and  thirty-six  miles  from  Gettysburg, 
towards  which  columns  of  both  armies  were 
directed,  themselves  ignorant  of  each  other's 
vicinage.  It  was  fine  summer  weather,  and  the 
young  gentlemen  of  the  staff  improved  the  next 
day  by  making  the  acquaintance  of  the  fair 
Union  ladies  of  the  place. 

At  five  in  the  afternoon,  the  general  wanted 
to  send  an  officer  to  General  Meade's  head 
quarters  for  orders  and  information,  and,  as  I 
happened  to  be  about,  I  was  chosen.  With  an 
orderly  I  rode  twenty  miles  to  Taneytown 
through  a  beautiful  country,  the  air  filled  with 
the  scent  of  flowers  and  new-mown  hay. 


142          FOLLOWING   THE    GREEK   CROSS. 

Near  Taneytown  I  came  upon  General  Han 
cock  riding  to  headquarters  from  the  field,  and 
he  told  me  of  the  gallant  fight  of  the  1st  corps 
that  day,  how  they  had  been  defeated  by  greater 
numbers  at  last,  how  General  Reynolds  had  been 
killed,  and  of  the  new  line  formed  in  the  Cem 
etery  of  Gettysburg.  Soon  we  saw  the  head 
quarters  tents  glimmering  in  the  darkness,  and 
I  reported  to  General  Seth  Williams,  adjutant- 
general  of  the  army,  who  gave  me  some  refresh 
ments,  and  told  me  there  was  a  council  of  war 
going  on  in  General  Meade's  large  hospital  tent 
next  to  his.  After  waiting  awhile,  he  took  me 
in,  and  I  saw  General  Meade  in  the  centre  stand 
ing  by  a  table  covered  with  maps,  and  several 
corps  commanders  grouped  around.  There  was 
Howard,  with  his  empty  sleeve,  commanding 
the  llth  corps ;  Sickles,  commanding  the  3d 
corps ;  Slocum,  commanding  the  12th  corps ; 
and  Sykes,  commanding  the  5th  corps,  besides 
Hancock.  General  Meade,  after  finishing  a 
remark  he  was  making  in  a  low  voice  when  I 
entered,  said,  "  To-morrow,  gentlemen,  we  fight 
the  decisive  battle  of  the  war.  Where  is  the 
officer  from  the  6th  corps?"  As  I  stepped  for 
ward,  he  handed  me,  written  on  yellow  tissue 
paper,  the  orders  for  the  corps,  and  another  for 
General  Newton  to  take  command  of  the  1st 
corps.  He  told  me  to  commit  them  to  memory 


Iff 


GENERAL,    GEORGE    G.  MEADE 


A   SEVENTY-MILE  RIDE,   i  143 

and  destroy  them  in  case  of  need,  as  the  enemy's 
cavalry  were  reported  scouting  about.  He  then 
asked  me  if  I  had  a  cavalry  escort ;  when  I  told 
him  I  had  not,  he  offered  me  one.  I  told  him  I 
would  get  through  quicker  alone.  He  then  said, 
"Tell  General  Sedgwick  that  I  expect  to  put 
him  in  on  the  right,  and  hope  he  will  be  up  in 
time  to  decide  the  victory  for  us." 

General  Meade's  solemn  bearing  impressed 
me  very  much,  and  I  felt  some  awe  at  the  cir 
cumstances  in  which  I  was  placed,  being  little 
more  than  a  boy  in  age.  Near  midnight  I 
started  on  my  return,  feeling  as  if  I  had  some 
thing  to  do  with  the  fate  of  the  nation.  After 
a  long  gallop,  I  came  upon  farmers  driving  off 
their  horses,  who  told  me  that  Stuart's  cavalry 
was  just  behind  them,  and  I  kept  a  bright  look 
out,  several  times  hiding  in  the  woods  and  wait 
ing  till  mounted  men  got  by,  whose  hoof-beats 
were  plainly  audible  in  the  still  night.  I  don't 
think  I  passed  any  rebels,  though,  for  their  cav 
alry  was,  unfortunately  for  Lee,  cut  off  from  our 
rear.  However,  I  did  not  know  that,  and,  as  I 
was  hiding  again  about  three  in  the  morning 
and  holding  my  horse's  nose,  instead  of  some 
of  Mosby's  gentry  I  saw  General  Sedgwick's 
straw  hat  appear  through  the  trees  at  the  head 
of  the  corps.  General  Newton  was  riding  with 
him,  and  I  delivered  the  orders.  Now  General 


144          FOLLOWING   THE   GREEK   CROSS. 

Seclgwick,  hearing  of  the  battle,  had  started  the 
corps  for  Taneytown,  and  the  orders  were  to 
take  the  Baltimore  Pike  for  Gettysburg,  thirty- 
six  miles  away. 

If  anything  had  happened  to  me  that  night, 
he  would  have  gone  on  to  Taneytown,  tak 
ing  two  sides  of  the  triangle  instead  of  one. 
We  should  have  made  something  like  fifty  miles 
instead  of  thirty-six.  We  then  could  not  have 
arrived  on  the  second  day,  which  might  have 
changed  the  fate  of  the  battle,  for  eighteen  thou 
sand  troops  not  coming  up  would  probably  have 
made  a  difference  in  the  memorable  council  of 
war  held  on  the  night  of  the  second  day,  and 
the  question,  "  Shall  the  Army  of  the  Potomac 
fight  here  ? "  have  been  answered  differently. 
We  all  like  to  think  ourselves  of  some  use,  and 
such  were  my  youthful  speculations.  General 
Sedgwick,  though  unusually  stern  and  quiet,  gave 
rne  a  kind  word,  and  we  turned  the  head  of  the 
column  to  make  a  cross-cut  of  a  few  miles  to  the 
Baltimore  Pike.  Then  began  one  of  the  hard 
est  marches  we  ever  knew  —  thirty-six  miles  in 
dust  and  unusual  heat ;  but  the  men  pressed  on 
with  vigor  and  courage  through  it  all,  feeling 
themselves  on  Northern  soil  again  and  feel 
ing  that  we  were  expected  to  decide  the  victory. 
My  continuous  ride  was  over  seventy  miles  when 
we  stopped  behind  the  circle  of  hills  over  which 


UP  THE  BALTIMORE  PIKE.  145 

the  cannon  smoke  was  rising  and  where  many  a 
little  white  cloud,  almost  resting  in  the  air, 
showed  each  where  a  rebel  shell  had  burst. 

While  we  had  been  toiling  along  the  Balti 
more  Pike  so  many  weary  miles,  many  men  with 
feet  bleeding  and  scarcely  a  man  falling  out,  we 
had  heard  no  news.  We  were  aware  that  our 
people  were  engaged  only  by  the  booming  of  the 
artillery  which  sounded  strangely  muffled  coming 
from  behind  the  horseshoe  of  hills  that  made 
the  Union  position. 


CHAPTER  XXIV. 

"  Through  the  long  tormented  air 
Heaven  flashed  a  sudden  jubilant  ray, 
And  down  we  swept  and  charged  and  overthrew." 

TENNYSON. 

THE  beautiful  dawn  of  the  second  day  of  the 
battle  looked  upon  the  bulk  of  both  great  armies 
in  readiness  for  action  :  the  Confederates  about 
seventy  thousand  strong,  the  Union  army  about 
eighty  thousand,  marshaled  against  each  other 
in  grim  array.  Our  people  had  a  circular  posi 
tion  with  the  bow  toward  the  enemy.  The 
rugged  sides  of  Gulp's  Hill  formed  the  right, 
the  gentle  slopes  and  plateau  of  the  cemetery 
the  centre,  and  behind  our  left  which  was,  later 
in  the  day,  pushed  out  to  the  Emmetsburg  Pike 
by  General  Sickles,  frowned  Great  and  Little 
Round  Top.  The  Confederate  line  enveloped 
ours,  and  that  became  one  of  their  chief  disad 
vantages  in  the  fight,  as  the  distances  were 
greater  going  around  their  half-circle  with  orders 
or  reinforcements,  —  very  much  greater  than  ours 
were  to  take  a  radius,  or  an  arc,  of  our  circle. 
The  unconnected  nature  of  many  of  their 
attacks  may  thus  be  accounted  for.  Both  sides 


LONGSTREETS  ATTACK.  147 

spent  much  of  the  forenoon  mano3uvring  for  posi 
tion.  But  Lee  organized  two  forward  move 
ments,  one  on  our  right  at  Gulp's  Hill  and  the 
cemetery  by  Ewell ;  and  the  other  by  Longstreet 
with  Hood's  Texas  division  and  McLaw's,  in 
tended  to  outflank  our  left.  Both  were  ex 
pected  to  have  been  delivered  earlier  in  the  day, 
and  much  recrimination  has  been  indulged  in  by 
the  Southern  generals  since  on  this  subject. 
The  attack  upon  Gulp's  Hill,  which  formed  the 
right  of  our  line,  was  furious  in  the  extreme,  but 
after  some  hours  of  fight,  when  darkness  fell, 
the  only  advantage  gained  by  the  Confederates 
was  the  possession  of  a  part  of  the  line  of  the 
12th  corps,  they  being  unaware  that  they  had 
almost  reached  the  Baltimore  Pike,  where  were 
our  trains,  hospitals,  and  ammunition  wagons. 

Longstreet's  attack,  if  delayed,  was  magnifi 
cent,  even  as  his  attack  at  Chickamauga  was 
magnificent.  There  was  an  angle  in  our  line  on 
Sickles's  front.  Longstreet  put  his  whole  force 
at  this  angle,  near  which  was  the  celebrated 
Peach  Orchard,  and  doubled  Sickles  back  on 
the  2d  corps  in  one  direction  and  toward  Devil's 
Den  and  Little  Round  Top  in  the  other. 
During  this  part  of  the  action  and  the  fighting 
which  followed,  the  3d,  4th,  17th,  19th,  and  the 
20th  Maine  regiments  did  great  honor  to  the 
Pine  Tree  State. 


148          FOLLOWING   THE   GREEK   CROSS. 

Little  Kound  Top,  the  possession  of  which 
meant  victory  to  the  Confederates,  was  only 
occupied  by  a  signal  officer  at  the  time,  who 
kept  waving  his  flag  at  Hood's  Texans  strug 
gling  through  Devil's  Den  and  its  rocky  ap 
proaches  to  gain  the  coveted  hill.  Fortunately 
for  our  cause,  General  Warren,  engineer  in 
chief  of  the  army,  happened  to  ride  up,  and, 
seeing  the  gravity  of  the  situation,  got  hold  of 
Vincent's  brigade  of  the  5th  corps  and  Hazlitt's 
battery,  and  gained  the  summit,  dragging  the 
guns  up  by  hand,  and  were  just  in  time  to  hurl 
the  Texans  back  in  a  bloody  hand  to  hand 
struggle.  In  the  mean  time,  Hill  had  become 
engaged  on  the  Confederate  side,  and  part  of 
the  2d  corps  and  all  of  the  5th  corps  on  ours. 
General  Sedgwick  and  his  chief  of  staff, 
Colonel  McMahon,  had  gone  to  Meade's  head 
quarters  for  orders.  Two  of  us  had  purchased 
some  cherry-pies  of  a  very  freckled-faced  girl  at 
a  neighboring  farmhouse,  and  had  just  joined 
the  rest  of  the  staff,  who  were  in  the  shadiest 
place  they  could  find  upon  the  banks  of  Rock 
Creek,  and  we  were  all  listening  with  suppressed 
excitement  to  a  tremendous  outburst  of  cannon 
and  musketry  over  the  hills  to  the  left,  when 
McMahon  came  riding  down  the  hill,  swinging 
his  hat  and  shouting,  "  The  general  directs  the 
corps  toward  the  heavy  firing."  In  an  instant 


UP  LITTLE  ROUND   TOP.  149 

every  man  was  on  his  feet.  The  fences  were 
broken  down  and  the  heads  of  the  brigades 
broke  off  into  the  fields  and  began  ascending 
the  long  slopes  toward  the  Eound  Tops,  nearly 
a  mile  away.  Captain  Farrar  and  I  were  with 
the  first  brigade  to  arrive  (Colonel  Nevins's),  and 
we  all  helped  to  swing  it  into  line,  as  it  moved 
gallantly  over  the  crest.  General  Sedgwick 
sent  us  in  with  it,  and  as  we  went  over  the  crest 
the  round  shot  whistled  very  close,  and  we 
passed  over  what  seemed  to  be  fragments  of  the 
5th  corps,  passed  General  Sykes  commanding  it, 
and  on  into  the  smoke  beyond  at  the  double- 
quick  down  to  a  stone  wall  at  the  right  and  foot 
of  Little  Round  Top,  and  opened  a  rousing  fire. 
The  attack  of  the  enemy  in  front  reminded  me 
then  of  the  last"  wave  on  the  beach,  stopping  and 
being  pushed  up  a  little  more  and  a  little  more 
from  behind.  I  was  on  the  right  of  the  brigade, 
and  rode  across  behind  it,  where  I  saw  the 
boulders  piled  on  the  top  of  Little  Round  Top, 
and  started  to  ride  up  there  to  see  what  I  could. 
I  had  to  go  fast  across  the  front  of  the  Pennsyl 
vania  Reserves,  who  were  making  a  charge  that 
looked  like  a  picture  of  a  battle,  and  it  looked 
as  if  it  were  on  me. 

Then  my  active  little  horse,  forgetting  his  sev 
enty  or  eighty  mile  ride,  took  me  up  the  steep 
northwest  side  of  Little  Round  Top,  to  where 


150          FOLLOWING    THE   GREEK   CROSS. 

Hazlitt's  guns  were  still  firing,  though  their 
commander  was  dead  and  the  rocks  seemed  to 
be  covered  with  corpses  in  light  blue  Zouave 
uniform.  I  afterwards  learned  that  they  were 
the  140th  New  York.  On  looking  back  I  could 
see  no  enemy  firing  except  by  Devil's  Den  and 
in  the  valley,  and  I  was  told  by  an  officer  en 
sconced  behind  a  boulder  that  I  had  better  get 
out  of  that  if  I  did  not  want  to  be  picked  off, 
as  the  bullets  were  flattening  themselves  against 
the  rocks  all  about.  So  quickly  over  the  hill  I 
went ;  and  found  what  was  left  of  the  regular 
brigade  under  Colonel  Greene,  and  they  looked 
like  a  small  regiment.  Speaking  to  one  or  two 
friends  I  rode  back  to  General  Sedgwick  and 
was  glad  to  rest,  for  the  fighting  was  over  on  the 
left  for  that  day.  Our  several  brigades  had 
been  sent  as  reinforcements  to  different  points, 
so  our  command  was  small.  Gloomy  reports 
kept  coming  in,  and  near  dark  Major  Whittier, 
the  general's  confidential  aide,  told  me  we  were 
going  to  march  back  twenty  miles  that  night, 
and  that  the  general  was  going  to  the  head 
quarters  to  a  council  of  war.  Later,  we  gladly 
learned  we  were  to  stay  where  we  were.  With 
a  blanket  and  something  to  eat,  and  after  a 
soothing  pipe,  with  our  saddles  for  pillows  and 
overcoats  for  bed  and  blankets,  we  were  soon 
sleeping  the  dreamless  sleep  of  youth  and  fatigue. 


CHAPTER  XXV. 

"  And  louder  than  the  bolts  of  heaven 
Far  flashed  the  red  artillery." 

CAMPBELL. 

AT  daybreak  of  the  third  day,  General  Slo- 
cum  attacked  those  of  Ewell's  corps  who  had  ob 
tained  a  lodgment  in  his  lines,  and  with  the  assist 
ance  of  two  brigades,  Neill's  and  Shaler's  of  the 
6th  corps,  succeeded  in  driving  them  out  and  rec 
tifying  his  line.  After  breakfast  I  went  over  to 
the  right,  passing  through  the  cemetery,  and 
came  to  Power's  Hills  where  General  Slocum  had 
his  headquarters.  He  asked  me  to  stay  with  him 
a  while  as  he  was  short  of  staff  officers,  and  soon 
told  me  to  take  Neill's  brigade,  in  which  was 
my  regiment,  the  7th  Maine,  over  to  a  hill  to 
the  right  of  our  whole  line.  After  a  short  march 
we  came  to  the  hill,  got  into  line,  and  advanced 
toward  its  wooded  summit,  but  when  halfway 
up  were  received  with  a  severe  fire.  The  men, 
however,  took  the  double-quick  and  soon  drove 
the  enemy  from  the  top.  Our  opponents  proved 
to  be  the  advance  of  Johnson's  division,  who 
were  working  their  way  round  our  right  and 


152          FOLLOWING   THE   GREEK   CROSS. 

soon  would  have  been  on  the  Baltimore  Pike, 
which  would  have  been  in  the  highest  degree 
disastrous  to  us.  I  then  rode  back  to  General 
Slocum  to  report,  and  then  to  General  Sedg- 
wick,  near  Little  Kound  Top. 

It  was  becoming  exceedingly  hot,  and  it  was 
very  uncertain  what  was  to  be  done.  As  it  is  one 
of  the  first  duties  of  a  staff  officer  to  get  informa 
tion,  I  went  over  to  Little  Kound  Top,  finding 
I  could  get  to  it  from  one  side  not  exposed  to 
sharpshooters.  Near  the  summit  I  discovered  a 
little  rocky  crest  where  I  could  see  out  all  over 
that  part  of  the  field.  It  was  still  occupied  as  a 
signal  station,  and  my  old  friend  Ned  Pierce  was 
signal  officer.  As  the  firing  began  to  grow 
over  beyond  Devil's  Den,  I  soon  saw  blue-coated 
troopers  through  intervals  in  the  trees,  and  they 
were  attacking  the  infantry  of  the  Confederate 
right.  They  seemed,  from  sight  and  sound,  to 
have  penetrated  quite  a  distance  into  the  enemy's 
lines,  but  as  the  ground  became  opener  it  was 
cruel  to  see  them  charging  over  fences  and  up  to 
the  woods  only  to  be  destroyed  by  the  deliberate 
fire  of  the  Southern  rifle.  This  was  Farns- 
worth's  celebrated  charge  in  which  he  fell  with 
glory.  Looking  off  farther  to  the  right,  there 
seemed  to  have  been  a  change  in  the  appearance 
of  the  enemy's  lines  since  the  day  before,  and, 
borrowing  a  glass  from  the  signal  officer,  I  was 


DEATH-DEALING   CANNON.  153 

able  to  distinguish  much  moving  about  of  troops 
and  artillery,  as  well  as  to  count  over  a  hundred 
guns  ranged  in  a  semicircle  and  seemingly  di 
rected  toward  the  centre  of  our  line.  Many  of 
them  were  Napoleon  guns  of  polished  brass  and 
were  glistening  in  the  sun.  I  could  not  see  ours 
from  where  I  was,  and  did  not  know  that  Hunt 
had  concentrated  McGilvery  and  Hazard  and 
the  artillery  reserve  in  nearly  as  formidable  an 
array  to  reply.  About  this  time,  Generals  Meade 
and  Warren  came  up  on  the  rocks  to  take  a 
look,  and  I  dodged  back  to  tell  the  general  that 
it  looked  like  a  cannonade  pretty  soon.  We  were 
all  sitting  down  somewhere  at  noontime,  with 
our  horses  close  by,  and  enjoying  a  simple  lunch 
of  hard-tack  and  coffee,  when  two  guns  were 
fired  from  the  enemy's  lines. 

I  remember  we  were  in  a  field  which  had 
many  boulders  and  some  small  trees  in  it.  I  con 
cluded  I  did  not  want  any  more  lunch,  and  got 
behind  a  boulder  large  enough  to  cover  me  and 
my  horse,  and  in  a  little  while  it  began.  Such 
a  cannonade  was  never  heard  on  the  continent 
of  America,  one  hundred  and  thirty  guns  on  the 
Confederate  side  and  eighty  on  ours.  The  rebels 
seemed  to  be  mostly  firing  by  battery,  and  ours 
one  at  a  time.  The  open  ground  behind  our 
Jine  was  being  torn  up  in  every  direction  by  the 
shells.  Occasionally  a  caisson  exploded,  rider- 


154        '  FOLLOWING   THE   GREEK   CROSS. 

less  horses  were  dashing  about,  and  a  throng  of 
wounded  were  streaming  to  the  rear.  When 
the  cannonade  was  at  its  height  and  every  one  of 
judgment  was  utilizing  what  cover  he  could  find, 
I  saw  coming  over  the  plain  behind  us,  which 
was  being  beaten  into  dust  in  every  direction  by 
the  enemy's  shells,  a  man  with  a  long  beard  and 
spectacles,  wearing  a  brown  linen  duster.  When 
he  got  a  little  nearer,  I  saw  that  he  was  our  sut 
ler's  clerk  and  that  he  staggered  in  his  gait.  As 
he  got  pretty  near  me,  a  shell  shrieked  between 
us  with  more  than  usually  fiendish  noise,  and  he 
looked  down  at  me,  putting  his  hand  up  to  his 
ear,  and  said,  "Listen  to  the  mocking  bird." 
With  the  providential  good  fortune  of  drunken 
men,  he  had  crossed  for  some  distance  in  safety 
over  ground  upon  which  it  seemed  impossible  for 
any  living  thing  to  remain  a  minute. 

This  cannonade  lasted  about  an  hour,  and  we 
all  knew  that  it  was  intended  as  the  prelude  to 
an  infantry  attack,  but  where  the  attack  would 
be  was  in  doubt,  as  their  fire  did  not  seem  to 
be  concentrated  on  any  particular  part  of  our 
line.  That  is  where  they  were  in  error,  as  the 
whole  of  their  fire  directed  on  the  2d  corps 
would  have  given  their  attack  a  much  better 
chance.  We  did  not  feel  very  anxious,  however, 
as  our  men  were  hugging  the  ground  and  gripping 
their  muskets  in  front;  and  were  they  not  the 


PICKETT'S   CHARGE.  155 

tried  and  true  that  stormed  St.  Marye's  Heights 
not  long  ago,  and  had  never  lost  a  color  or  a  gun 
to  the  enemy  since  they  had  first  marched  out 
from  their  far  Northern  homes  ?  Now  the  fire  on 
our  side  stopped,  but  for  fifteen  minutes  yet  the 
one  hundred  and  thirty  Confederate  guns  belch 
out  flame.  Hunt,  chief  of  artillery,  had  ordered 
our  fire  to  cease,  that  the  guns  might  cool  to  be 
ready  for  the  coming  assault.  The  enemy 
thought  that  they  had  silenced  our  fire,  only  to 
be  bitterly  disappointed  a  little  later.  Then 
suddenly  all  the  firing  ceased,  and  there  was  a 
lull.  The  smoke  clouds  were  rising  on  the  op 
posite  crest,  the  sunlight  again  glinting  on  the 
long  line  of  brass  guns ;  but  what  was  that  gray 
mass  that  seemed  to  be. moving  scarce  distin 
guishable  from  the  smoke  wreaths  about  it  ?  In 
a  moment  there  was  little  doubt  what  it  was,  for 
on  comes  the  wonderful  Virginia  infantry  of 
Pickett,  and  beyond  the  North  Carolinians  of 
Fender  and  Pettigrew,  and  this  side  the  large 
brigade  of  Cadmus  Wilcox.  It  was  a  thrilling 
sight,  and  I  thought  of  the  great  charges  of  the 
French  infantry  at  Wagram  and  Austerlitz  that 
I  loved  to  read  of  in  childhood.  On  they  came : 
it  looked  to  me  like  three  lines  about  a  mile  long 
each,  in  perfect  order.  They  crossed  the  Em- 
metsburg  Pike,  and  our  guns,  eighty  in  all, 
cool  and  in  good  shape,  open  first  with  shot  and 


156          FOLLOWING   THE   GREEK   CROSS. 

then  with  shell.  Great  gaps  are  made  every  sec 
ond  in  their  ranks,  but  the  gray  soldiers  close  up 
to  the  centre  and  the  color-bearers  jump  to  the 
front,  shaking  and  waving  the  "  Stars  and  Bars." 
And  so  they  pass  out  of  my  sight  for  a  few  min 
utes,  as  Zeigler's  Grove  in  front  of  our  line 
shuts  them  off.  But  a  tremendous  roar  of  mus 
ketry  crashes  out,  and  I  know  the  big  guns  are 
firing  grape  and  canister  now.  And  soon  they 
appear  again,  and  this  time  the  colors  are 
together  like  a  little  forest,  but  the  men  are 
dropping  like  leaves  in  autumn.  They  pass  our 
line,  thousands  of  men  in  gray  left  yet,  and  I 
believe  our  centre  is  pierced:  I  could  not  see 
that  they  threw  down  their  arms.  So,  fast  as  I 
could  ride,  I  went  down  there  for  information, 
as  I  knew  the  general  would  want  to  attack  at 
once  with  all  the  6th  corps  he  could  lay  hands 
on.  But  I  soon  saw  to  my  great  joy  that 
we  were  victors  still,  and  that  the  flower  of  the 
South  had  dashed  themselves  to  pieces  against 
the  sturdy  2d  corps  alone.  I  saw  General 
Armistead,  the  Confederate  leader,  dying,  and 
near  him  Gushing  of  the  regular  artillery,  who 
had  fired  his  last  gun  with  one  hand,  though 
partly  cut  in  two,  holding  his  body  together 
with  the  other.  Then  I  tried  to  ride  over  the 
field,  but  could  not,  for  the  dead  and  wounded 
lay  too  thick  to  guide  a  horse  through  them.  Then 


STUARTS    CAVALRY  DEFEATED.  157 

it  occurred  to  me  that  our  corps  must  have  or 
ders  by  this  time  to  make  a  counter-attack,  as 
the  thing  to  do  under  the  circumstances,  so  I  got 
back  again  as  fast  as  possible,  but  was  soon  sent 
with  a  message  to  General  Slocum  on  the  right. 
While  there  I  heard  firing  to  the  north  of  Gettys 
burg  and  rode  out  beyond  our  lines  to  see  what  it 
was,  and  from  a  hill  was  fortunate  enough  to  see 
the  defeat  of  Stuart's  cavalry  by  Gregg.  All  it 
looked  like  was  a  dust  cloud  with  flakes  of  light 
in  it  as  the  sun  shone  upon  the  swinging  sabres. 
Lee  had  ordered  his  cavalry  to  attack  on  our 
right  about  the  same  time  as  Pickett,  and  they 
would  have  done  us  vast  mischief  had  they  suc 
ceeded  in  beating  our  cavalry,  while  if  Pickett's 
charge  had  succeeded,  they  would  have  been  in 
position  to  have  done  us  similar  damage  to  the 
work  of  the  Prussian  cavalry  at  Waterloo. 

Thus  ended  the  battle  of  Gettysburg.  Lee 
retreated  the  next  day,  and,  though  he  fought 
with  skill  and  determination  for  two  years  more, 
there  was  little  doubt  of  the  end  when  the  last 
of  his  dauntless  columns  filed  through  Monterey 
Gap  on  their  way  to  cross  the  Potomac. 


CHAPTER  XXVI. 

"  Friendly  traitress,  loving  foe." 

CHARLES  LAMB. 

MORNING  arose,  dreary  and  pale,  upon  the 
battle-field  of  Gettysburg.  It  would  soon  re 
semble  a  vast  charnel-house,  but  the  work  of  cov 
ering  up  the  mangled,  blackened  clay,  and  caring 
for  poor  maimed  humanity  was  busily  going  on. 
The  depression  following  great  excitement  was 
upon  us,  and  it  seemed  as  if  our  army  was 
about  to  do  its  usual  waiting  after  a  victory. 
Whether  wise  or  not,  we  did  wait  all  day,  and  the 
rain  fell  in  torrents.  This  was  one  of  the  days 
we  needed  Sheridan.  Not  until  the  next  after 
noon  did  orders  come  for  the  6th  corps  to  lead  in 
the  pursuit.  General  Sedgwick  sent  Lieutenant 
Andrews  and  me  to  visit  the  rebel  hospitals  and 
estimate  the  number  of  their  wounded.  In  this 
painful  duty  the  time  wore  away,  occasionally 
enlivened  by  the  meeting  of  my  companion  and 
some  fellow  West  Pointer  of  the  Confederate 
army,  and  their  struggles  at  first  to  be  very  an 
gry  with  each  other  were  amusing  to  me. 

At  nightfall  we  managed  to   lose   our    way, 


OUR   CAPUA.  159 

though  we  had  started  out  all  right  toward  the 
noise  of  a  distant  cannonade  where  our  corps 
were  trying  to  force  a  mountain  pass.  We  rode 
on  until  midnight  utterly  lost,  and  at  length  see 
ing  many  lights  on  a  hill  beyond,  for  a  time  we 
thought  we  were  up  with  the  enemy.  Carefully 
reconnoitring,  however,  we  got  to  a  large  house 
where  some  thirty  of  the  country  people  were 
holding  a  jubilee  over  our  victory.  They  had  as 
yet  seen  no  one  from  the  Union  army,  and  the 
most  unbounded  hospitality  was  pressed  upon  us. 
We  soon  tore  ourselves  away  from  this  Capua, 
and,  getting  the  right  direction  at  last,  caught 
up  with  our  headquarters  by  daybreak.  Things 
had  been  going  wrong.  The  general  was  walk 
ing  up  and  down  in  the  middle  of  the  road,  full 
of  unusual  wrath.  We  reported,  and  were  put 
to  work  at  once  in  as  hard  riding  as  we  could  do 
for  the  rest  of  that  dismal  day.  Toward  night 
we  came  to  a  mountain  afterward  known  in  our 
annals  as  "  Mount  Misery."  The  road  lay  di 
rectly  over  its  summit,  rocky  and  narrow.  By 
midnight  the  head  of  our  column  reached  the 
cloudy  top  in  profound  darkness  and  storm.  The 
troops  filled  the  steep  highway  which  was  fast 
becoming  a  torrent,  and  their  unusual  fatigue 
made  a  halt  necessary.  Word  came  that  our 
artillery  and  ammunition  wagons  had  mistaken 
their  orders,  which  were  to  take  a  different  and 


160         FOLLOWING   THE   GREEK   CROSS. 

much  longer  road  around  the  mountain,  and  had 
got  as  far  up  the  hillside  as  the  tired  animals 
could  draw  their  loads.  The  general  sent  Mc- 
Mahon  and  me  back  with  directions  to  turn  the 
batteries  about  and  get  them  on  their  proper 
way.  Now  we  could  not  ride  down  on  the  road, 
which  was  not  much  more  than  a  footpath,  and 
full  of  weary  men  lying  where  they  had  halted, 
so  we  started  to  go  down  the  side  of  the  moun 
tain.  My  man  Bennett  rode  a  white  horse  that 
cast  a  faint  glimmer  a  few  steps  off,  so  we  let 
him  go  first,  and  took  a  zigzag  direction  down 
through  the  woods  and  over  the  rocks. 

We  got  there  somehow,  stumbling  and  sliding, 
scratched  and  torn  by  the  branches,  and  wet  to 
the  skin,  and  only  the  instinct  of  our  good  horses 
preserved  us  from  going  over  some  of  the  nu 
merous  precipices  on  the  route.  At  the  foot  were 
the  "red  artillery,"  fast  asleep  in  the  narrow 
road.  Every  battery  and  wagon  had  to  be  har 
nessed  and  turned  about  by  hand,  and  we  had 
many  fine  opportunities  to  curb  our  tempers,  for 
they  did  not  like  to  be  waked  up  and  some  were 
disposed  to  question  our  authority.  At  last, 
about  three  in  the  morning,  the  job  was  done, 
and  finding  a  barn  near  by  we  led  our  worn-out 
horses  into  the  haymow,  and  there  we  stretched 
out,  master  and  man,  upon  the  soft  hay  as  upon 
a  bed  of  Elysium.  How  good  it  felt!  And 


THE  FUNKSTOWN  TRAITRESS.  161 

when  Bennett  produced  a  small  flask  of  the  wine 
of  the  country,  I  believe  even*Neal  Dow  would 
have  joined  us  had  he  been  in  those  parts.  But 
we  could  not  sleep  long.  The  farmer  came  out 
to  feed  his  cattle  and  discovered  the  three 
tramps,  and  made  us  come  in  to  breakfast.  The 
memory  of  those  flapjacks  is  still  regnant  after 
some  thirty  years.  He  and  the  goodwife  may 
have  been  gathered  to  their  fathers  long  since, 
and  if  living  it  is  not  probable  they  should  ever 
see  these  lines,  but  I  wish  they  could  know  we  are 
still  thankful. 

The  bright  sun  was  shining,  the  meadows 
were  drying,  as  we  cheerfully  galloped  along 
through  the  beautiful  valley  to  catch  up  with 
our  people,  and  it  was  restful  not  to  be  looking 
out  for  guerrillas  at  every  turn,  as  in  Virginia. 
We  were  getting  down  into  a  familiar  country 
again,  lovely  Maryland.  As  we  came  near  the 
pretty  little  village  of  Funkstown,  a  familiar 
rattling  skirmish  fire  made  itself  apparent,  and 
we  could  see  in  the  distance  a  line  of  rebel  in 
fantry  charging  upon  a  thin  and  scattered  blue 
line  of  ours,  and  we  saw  the  enemy  give  back 
and  run,  then  rally  and  come  forward,  only  to 
again  break  and  go  to  the  rear.  The  Vermont 
brigade  in  a  superb  skirmish  line  were  giving 
their  usual  good  account  of  themselves.  Then 
we  caught  up  with  our  staff  and  were  chaffed 


162         FOLLOWING   THE   GREEK  CROSS. 

vigorously  upon  our  disheveled  appearance. 
Two  days  and  nights  in  the  saddle  would  make 
even  a  young  Adonis  look  unkempt.  I  had  no 
claims  to  be  an  Adonis,  but  Andrews  had,  so 
when  I  rode  with  him  into  Funkstown,  and  saw  a 
most  beatific  vision  of  a  young  woman,  on  the 
porch  of  the  principal  house,  waving  two  Confed 
erate  flags,  I  noticed  that  her  hostile  e^es  softened 
and  she  changed  from  a  very  Bellona  to  only  a 
handsome  girl,  at  the  sight  of  my  good-looking 
companion.  Andrews  said,  "Let's  call  on  the 
Funkstown  traitress,"  and  we  did.  She  received 
us  like  a  young  queen,  told  of  her  rides  of  forty 
miles  or  more  to  carry  intelligence  to  Stone 
wall  Jackson,  and  gloried  in  her  patriotism, 
while  we  gloried  in  her  beauty.  Before  our 
duties  called  us  beyond  Funkstown,  her  hatred 
for  the  Yankees  had  relaxed  and  she  was  naught 
but  "  pure  womanly."  Where  she  is  now  I 
know  not,  but  the  prejudices  of  that  day  put  one 
side,  she  was  but  a  brave  young  American  girl, 
—  yes,  a  heroine. 

Lee's  army  had  got  into  position  in  a  semi 
circle  on  our  side  of  the  Potomac,  and  we  looked 
them  over  with  a  view  of  attacking.  There  was 
a  council  of  war,  and  as  usual  we  did  n't  fight. 
It  has  always  been  clear  to  my  mind  that  the 
council  was  right.  I  had  the  presentiment  often 
told  that  I  was  going  to  be  killed  that  day,  and  I 


THE   GENERAL'S   FORBEARANCE.  163 

respected  the  decision  of  the  council.  It  was  a 
question  of  attacking  intrenched  works  with  no 
special  advantage  on  our  side.  Such  a  thing 
was  dangerous  then  ;  in  these  later  days  of  war,* 
simply  impossible.  The  blunder  of  letting  them 
get  and  intrench  the  position  should  weigh  heav 
ily  upon  the  reputation  of  the  general  who  was 
responsible  for  it. 

That  night  over  the  river  they  went  in  a  most 
masterly  way.  Our  cavalry  picked  up  a  lot  of 
prisoners,  and  the  next  evening  about  a  thou 
sand  were  turned  over  to  me  to  care  for.  See 
ing  a  beautiful  field,  I  corralled  them  there  under 
guard  and  went  to  much-needed  sleep,  which  was 
soon  broken  by  a  message  that  the  general 
wanted  to  see  me.  He  made  apparent  to  my 
dazed  senses  that  my  field  was  within  hail  of  the 
rebel  pickets  on  the  other  side  of  the  Potomac, 
and  that  my  prisoners  would  before  morning 
"  silently  steal  away."  It  is  unnecessary  to  say 
that  I  promptly  removed  them,  but  it  is  one  of 
my  many  pleasant  recollections  of  my  kind  gen 
eral  that  this  time  his  chaff  was  silent  and  he 
did  not  tell  the  boys. 


CHAPTER  XXVII. 

"  But  ever  a  blight  on  their  labors  lay, 
And  ever  the  quarry  would  vanish  away." 

RUDYARD  KIPLING. 

AGAIN  the  Army  of  the  Potomac  crossed  its 
natal  river.  Our  corps  brought  up,  after  sev 
eral  marches,  at  the  beautiful  little  town  of 
Warrenton,  where  we  remained  many  weeks. 
Our  duties  were  light  and  festivities  frequent. 
Why  we  stayed  so  long  during  the  fine  fall 
weather  we  did  not  know,  but  we  could  easily 
be  contented  with  our  surroundings.  It  was 
possible  to  go  to  the  Warren  Green  Hotel  and 
sleep  in  a  room  if  we  chose.  We  had  horse 
races,  reviews,  and  many  an  evening  serenade. 
The  general's  old  division  of  the  2d  corps 
presented  him  with  a  splendid  horse  and  trap 
pings,  and  we  entertained  a  thousand  guests 
that  day.  They  came  from  all  the  corps  of 
the  army,  but  our  good  cheer  did  not  give  out 
or  the  fun  abate  till,  at  midnight,  a  quarter- 
mile  race  by  moonlight  between  the  crack  horses 
of  the  corps,  ridden  by  their  owners,  closed 
the  merry-making.  The  order  kept  in  Warren- 


REBEL   MAIDENS   OF    WARRENTON.         165 

ton  and  the  security  to  property  became  so 
marked  that  at  length  the  people  received  us 
at  their  houses  in  the  most  friendly  manner. 
Afterward,  the  young  ladies  were  taken  to  task 
by  their  friends  in  the  Southern  army  for  being 
polite  to  the  hated  Yankees,  but  General  Lee  told 
them  "he  knew  Sedgwick  well,  and  he  would 
have  no  one  about  him  it  would  not  be  safe  to 
know."  When  we  first  came,  however,  the  bit 
terness  displayed  by  these  same  girls  was  well 
expressed  by  one  of  their  favorite  songs,  running 
as  follows  :  — 

"  You  can  never  win  us  back  ;  never  !  never  ! 
Though  we  perish  in  the  track  of  your  endeavor, 
Though  our  corpses  strew  the  earth 
That  smiled  upon  our  birth, 
And  blood  pollutes  each  hearthstone  forever ! 

"  We  have  risen  to  a  man,  stern  and  fearless  ; 
Of  your  curses  and  your  taunts  we  are  careless. 
Every  hand  is  on  its  knife, 
Every  gun  is  primed  for  strife, 
Every  palm  contains  a  life  high  and  peerless. 

"  You  have  no  such  blood  as  ours  for  the  shedding  ; 
In  veins  of  Cavaliers  it  had  its  heading  ; 
You  have  no  such  stately  men 
In  your  Abolition  den, 
Who  marched  through  death  and  danger,  nothing  dreading. 

"  Though  we  fall  beneath  the  fire  of  your  legions 
Paid  with  gold,  —  murd'rous  hire  !  base  allegiance  !  — 
For  every  drop  you  shed 


166  FOLLOWING    THE    GREEK   CROSS. 

We  shall  have  a  mound  of  dead, 

And  the  vultures  shall  be  fed  in  our  regions  ! 

"  The  battle  to  the  strong1  it  is  not  given 
While  the  Judge  of  right  and  wrong-  is  in  heaven ; 
While  the  God  of  David  still 
Guides  the  people  with  His  will, 
There  are  giants  yet  to  kill,  wrongs  unshriven !  " 

Beaumont,  our   poet   laureate,  soon   sang   it 
back  in  another  version  to  his  tuneful  guitar :  — 

"  Oh  !  yes,  we  '11  win  you  back,  rebel  beauties, 
With  '  sugar  and  hard-tack  '  to  your  duties ; 
Even  now  you  greatly  prize  the  glance  of  Yankee  eyes, 
And,  for  lovers,  Yankee  soldiers  well  they  'd  suit  ye's ! 

"  Our  camps  are  thronged  with  ladies  and  with  lassies, 
For  Salem  and  White  Plains  seeking  passes ; 
Every  one  desires  a  guard,  and  think  it 's  mighty  hard 
If  she  can't  get  lots  of  sugar  and  molasses. 

"  No,  we  've  no  such  men  as  yours  for  the  showing, 
Of  '  Cavalier '  descent  always  blowing ; 
On  convicts'  seedy  scions  transformed  to  Southern  lions ; 
Forsooth,  you  have  great  cause  for  your  crowing ! 

"  The  back-bone  of  the  '  so-called  '  has  been  shattered, 
And  the  hordes  of  the  unholy  have  been  scattered, 
And  you  tremble  lest  the  walls  of  Sumter  on  you  fall, 
By  '  Monitors '  and  '  Swamp  Angels  '  battered. 

"  'T  would  be  hard  to  feed  your  vultures  in  these  regions, 
After  having  been  traversed  by  your  legions ; 
Every  cussed  thing  to  eat  they  stole  on  their  retreat, 
And  there  's  nothing  left  but  chestnuts  and  persimmons." 

This  laid  the  offensive  ditty  to  rest,  and  the 
repertoire  of  the  fair  singers  retained  nothing 


AFTER  MOSBY.  167 

more  partisan  than  "  God  Save  the  South,"  "  The 
Origin  of  the  Harp,"  and  like  songs  then  in 
fashion.  I  would  be  glad  to  have  now  the  verses 
written  and  sung  in  those  idle  days,  for  the  asso 
ciations  they  would  recall.  One  chorus  still  lin 
gers  :  — 

"  McMahon  sighs  and  damns  the  eyes 
Of  every  one  who  looks  upon 
Fannette  the  fair,  with  golden  hair, 
The  loveliest  maid  in  Warrenton." 

About  the  middle  of  September  we  marched 
to  Stone  House  Mountain,  and  remained  there 
some  three  weeks,  and  then  on  to  Culpeper, 
coming  in  sight  of  Lee's  army.  We  expected  a 
great  battle  for  some  days,  and  then  marched 
back  to  Centreville  near  Washington,  Lee  on 
our  flank,  and  each  army  watching  a  chance  to 
get  the  other  at  disadvantage.  One  day  at  Cen 
treville,  the  rain  coming  down  in  sheets,  a  hatless 
officer  burst  into  our  tent  and  said  he  had  just  es 
caped  from  Mosby,  that  Captain ,who  was 

with  him,  had  been  taken,  and  that  Mosby  was 
behind  our  lines.  As  I  had  scouted  the  country 
well  over  the  day  before,  I  thought  he  would  go 
out  by  Frying  Pan  Shoals,  so  ordered  a  squadron 
of  Vermont  cavalry,  who  were  our  provost  guard, 
to  saddle  up,  and  several  of  us  went  out  with 
them  in  hopes  to  cut  him  off.  We  rode  some 
fifteen  miles  at  a  rapid  pace  to  the  supposed  out- 


168          FOLLOWING    THE   GREEK   CROSS. 

let,  and  got  into  ambush  ;  but  too  wet  and  cross 
to  remain  there  patiently,  we  started  back  on  the 
route  we  expected  him  to  come  out.  I  sent  a 
sergeant  ahead  with  orders  to  throw  up  his  hand 
as  soon  as  he  heard  anything  on  the  road,  we 
following  at  a  trot  with  drawn  and  sharpened 
sabres,  and  under  orders  to  use  nothing  else. 
After  a  couple  of  miles,  the  sergeant  gave  the 
signal,  and  we  charged  down  the  narrow  and 
winding  road  as  fast  as  good  horses  could  go, 
expecting  to  meet  and  smash  him  by  our  impetus. 
Nothing  appeared,  however,  and  we  wended  our 
homeward  way  through  the  soaked  and  sodden 
woodlands  with  a  disgust  too  deep  for  words. 
Some  time  after,  the  captured  captain  was  ex 
changed,  and  his  story  was  that  Mosby  was  on 
this  road  with  about  a  hundred  of  his  people ; 
that  they  heard  us  first  and  went  off  by  the 
left  flank  into  a  deep  ravine  ;  and  that  he  saw  us 
through  the  underbrush  go  by  on  the  gallop,  but 
could  not  utter  a  sound  as  two  pistols  were  held 
at  his  head,  and  that  Mosby  said  it  was  Kilpat- 
rick.  I  have  often  wondered  who  would  have 
come  out  best  had  he  charged  us  also.  They 
would  have  been  two  to  one,  but  we  were  far  the 
"  maddest." 

I  leave  to  the  tactical  historian  the  description 
of  the  grand  tactics  of  the  fall  of  '63.  In  pro 
cess  of  time  we  neared  Warrenton  again.  Be- 


GENERAL   D.  A.  RUSSELL 


A   CUP    WITH  "JEB"    STUART.  169 

fore  leaving  there  Kent  and  Andrews  had  put  in 
charge  of  the  young  ladies  two  bottles  of  cham 
pagne,  to  be  given  to  General  J.  E.  B.  Stuart, 
commanding  the  Confederate  cavalry  and  their 
classmate  at  West  Point,  when  he  should  come 
that  way. 

On  our  return  we  went  in  with  our  cavalry, 
and  the  rebel  cavalry  skirmished  out  as  we 
came  in.  We  proceeded  at  once  to  the  friendly 
Virginia  mansion  ;  the  fair  ladies  ushered  us  into 
the  dining-room,  and  there  were  the  champagne 
bottles  and  the  heel  taps  in  the  glasses,  where 
Stuart  and  his  staff  had  been  drinking  the 
health  of  his  old  chums  but  a  very  few  minutes 
before.  There  are  few  amenities  in  a  civil  war 
to  record,  but  when  Stuart  died  a  soldier's  death 
soon  after,  rather  sadness  than  exultation  was 
felt  at  6th  corps  headquarters. 

While  in  this  camp,  moved  by  the  splendid  suc 
cess  of  the  Vermont  brigade,  kept  in  full  ranks 
by  the  pride  of  their  State,  I  made  a  strong 
effort  to  have  a  Maine  brigade  formed  and  at 
tached  to  the  corps.  Generals  Sedgwick  and 
Meade  approved  the  idea  cordially,  and  it  was 
intended  to  take  the  5th,  6th,  and  7th  Maine, 
already  in  the  corps,  to  join  them  to  the  29th, 
General  Beal,  and  the  30th,  General  Fessenden, 
just  ready  to  leave  the  State.  The  plan  went 
well  till  it  reached  General  Halleck,  the  mar- 


170  FOLLOWING   THE   GREEK   CROSS. 

plot  of  the  war,  and  he  "  sat  on  it,"  giving  no 
reason. 

November  7th  we  were  ordered  out  of  camp 
and  left  our  luxurious  quarters  without  a  sigh. 
It  did  not  seem  as  if  we  had  been  earning  our 
money  for  quite  a  while,  and  it  was  time  to  be 
putting  down  the  rebellion  again. 

We  moved  toward  Rappahannock  Station,  ar 
riving  there  late  in  the  afternoon,  and  found  in 
our  front  a  chain  of  strong  forts  heavily  occupied 
by  the  foe.  It  was  soon  evident  that  we  were  to 
attack  them,  and  attack  them  we  did.  It  was  al 
most  dark  when  the  double  skirmish  line  moved 
forward,  General  D.  A.  Russell  in  command. 
I  took  an  order  to  him  as  he  was  starting,  al 
ready  wounded,  and  every  shot  from  the  enemy 
was  a  jet  of  fire,  while  all  was  quiet  and  dark  on 
our  side.  The  forts  were  covered  with  spitting 
fireworks  as  our  first  line,  the  6th  Maine  and  5th 
Wisconsin,  went  through  the  ditch  and  climbed 
the  rampart.  Then  there  was  a  hand  to  hand 
fight  of  fifteen  minutes ;  Upton's  brigade  came 
in  on  the  left,  and  the  prizes  of  victory  were 
eight  guns,  four  flags,  and  two  brigades  of  Stone 
wall  Jackson's  old  division,  prisoners. 

The  next  morning  I  counted  forty  of  the  6th 
Maine,  great  stalwart  fellows,  lying  dead,  close 
to  each  other.  I  was  up  all  that  night  caring 
for  the  prisoners.  I  regaled  the  two  brigade 


ANGRY  PRISONERS.  171 

commanders  with  the  best  I  had  to  eat  and 
army  whiskey  galore,  and  an  hour  afterward 
when  Colonel  Scofield,  our  corps  commissary, 
received  them  at  his  camp  and  offered  refresh 
ments,  one  of  them  answered,  "  Not  one  mouth 
ful,  sir,  till  my  men  are  fed !  "  I  strolled  among 
the  prisoners  and  marked  their  angry  looks,  and 
though  somewhat  ragged,  they  were  a  fine  hardy 
lot  of  soldiers,  intensely  mortified  to  have  been 
taken  behind  works,  by  an  attack  of  two  brigades 
only. 


CHAPTER  XXVIIL 

"  And  enterprises  of  great  pith  and  moment 
With  this  regard  their  currents  turn  awry, 
And  lose  the  name  of  action." 

Hamlet. 

WE  went  into  what  promised  to  be  our  win 
ter  camp  near  Rappahannock  Station,  and  corps 
headquarters  were  at  the  grand  old  Welford 
mansion,  now  deserted.  Its  hospitable  doors 
must  have  been  opened  near  a  century,  and  have 
ushered  many  a  squire  and  dame  of  the  olden 
time  to  quaint  revels  and  rich  feasts.  Perhaps 
Braddock  and  his  young  aide-de-camp  quaffed 
there  the  loving  cup  on  their  way  to  Fort  Du 
Quesne  ;  perhaps  Patrick  Henry  with  his  magic 
tongue  may  have  held  spellbound  his  fellow- 
patriots  around  its  generous  board.  But  no 
greater  honor  had  been  bestowed  upon  its  roof 
in  all  its  years  of  glory  and  prestige  than  that  of 
sheltering  John  Sedgwick  during  the  last  happy 
months  of  his  life.  Nowhere  do  his  young  staff 
officers  recollect  him  better  than  here.  A  lion 
in  battle,  but  with  the  harness  off,  gentle  as  a 
woman,  unselfish  as  a  saint.  Surely  those  of  us 
who  made  his  military  family  then  can  look  back 


A  BRITISH  CONTINGENT.  173 

upon  no  greater  privilege,  no  more  lasting  recol 
lection  than  being  permitted  to  enjoy  his  con 
fidence  and  appreciate  his  simple  greatness. 

We  soon  built  ourselves  houses,  or  fixed  up  our 
tents  comfortably  with  rough  chimneys  and  fire 
places  and  board  floors,  and  settled  down  to  the 
routine  of  winter  quarters,  as  we  supposed. 
Many  visitors  from  the  North  and  the  constant 
demands  of  hospitality,  entailed  by  the  coming 
and  going  of  our  many  friends  through  the  corps 
and  the  army,  filled  the  days  very  well.  Some 
English  officers  from  Canada,  among  whom  I  re 
member  General  Earl,  afterward  killed  in  Egypt, 
Lord  Castlekuff  and  Captain  Peel,  a  brother  of 
Sir  Robert  Peel,  spent  some  time  with  us,  and 
many  parties  were  given  in  their  honor.  We 
used  to  illustrate  the  great  politeness  of  one  of  our 
number  by  telling  how,  after  helping  the  young 
sprig  of  nobility  into  the  saddle,  he  said,  "  I  beg 
pardon,  my  Lord  Castlekuff,  I  don't  want  to  dis 
turb  you,  but  your  horse  is  standing  on  my  foot." 
The  Englishmen  bore  themselves  very  well  all 
through  the  rest  of  the  army  only  to  come  to  grief 
among  the  horse  artillery. 

The  cold  in  Virginia  when  it  does  come  is  a 
bitter,  biting  sort  of  cold,  piercing  to  bone  and 
marrow,  even  though  the  temperature  may  not 
be  so  low.  The  roads  were  all  frozen  solid,  and 
the  powers  above  us  thought  it  would  be  a  good 


174          FOLLOWING   THE   GREEK   CROSS. 

scheme  to  cross  the  Rapidan,  try  to  take  Lee 
by  surprise  and  beat  him  in  detail  before  he 
could  concentrate  his  army.  The  idea  was  good 
enough,  but  the  carrying  out  of  this  Mine  Run 
campaign,  as  I  think  about  it  now,  reminds  me  of 
Kinglake's  "Crimea,"  that  tragedy  of  errors. 
As  I  remember  it,  we  started  out  in  fine 
spirits,  and  Whittier  got  off  one  of  his  famous 
puns.  He  wanted  me  to  wait  a  minute  for  him, 
and  as  I  demurred  and  galloped  off,  called  out, 
"  Time  and  T.  Hyde  [tide]  wait  for  no  man." 

This  frosty,  bracing  Thanksgiving  morning 
reminded  us  of  our  beloved  Northern  winter. 
We  were  young  and  fond  of  change,  but  when 
we  got  to  the  river  and  found  the  3d  corps,  who 
led  our  column,  were  not  over  because  "  some 
one  had  blundered, "  gloom  began  to  set  in. 
Farrar,  my  chum,  had  had  a  bearskin  bag  made 
large  enough  for  both  of  us  to  crawl  into,  with  a 
flap  to  cover  the  entrance  to  the  thing.  We 
laughed  at  it  at  first,  but  I  did  not  laugh  the  six 
or  eight  nights  we  were  out,  except  from  sheer 
comfort,  as  the  others  were  trying  to  keep  warm. 
We  all  got  into  bivouac,  after  midnight,  and  at 
dawn  pulled  out  again,  following  the  3d  corps. 
They  very  soon  lost  their  way,  for  it  was  the 
Wilderness  country,  and  one  road  or  track  in  the 
dense  thickets  could  not  be  distinguished  from 
another ;  and  after  a  while  stumbled  into  John- 


LOCUST   GROVE  — MINE  RUN.  175 

son's  rebel  division,  who  may  have  lost  their  way 
also.  This  brought  about  a  fight,  and  a  sharp 
one,  too. 

We  came  up  close  to  support  General  French, 
and  while  we  were  not  much  engaged  at  Locust 
Grove,  a  more  trying  afternoon  I  never  passed. 
Most  of  the  cannon-balls  fired  at  the  3d  corps 
struck  the  frozen  ground  and  bounced  over  into 
us.  We  were  sitting  on  our  horses  in  a  clearing 
with  nothing  to  do  but  watch  these  balls,  which 
could  be  seen  like  a  swift-flying  baseball,  but 
each  sounded  like  the  wail  of  a  lost  spirit.  One 
seemed  to  come  directly  for  me.  It  could  not  be 
dodged,  but  it  swerved  a  little,  and  smashed  to 
pieces  two  innocent  stretcher-bearers  close  by 
who  were  carrying  off  a  wounded  man  who  was 
insensible.  As  soon  as  he  was  dashed  to  the 
ground,  however,  he  rushed  for  the  woods  with 
maniacal  yells.  This  was  very  depressing. 

Our  people  got  the  better  of  them  at  last, 
and  the  next  morning  we  took  the  lead  and 
fought  our  way  till  we  were  out  of  the  Wil 
derness  and  could  see  Lee's  army  nicely  concen 
trated  in  front  on  the  hills  beyond  Mine  Run. 
Some  one's  mistake,  a  pontoon  too  short,  and 
a  guide  missing,  had  lost  us  all  our  good  chances. 
But  the  generals  made  their  plans,  and  we  were 
kept  riding  everywhere,  till  late  at  night  we 
learned  that  our  general  was  to  make  a  storming 


176  FOLLOWING   THE   GREEK   CROSS. 

column  of  the  5th  and  6th  corps,  some  30,000 
men,  go  beyond  our  right  and  attack  the  enemy's 
flank  at  a  certain  signal  next  morning.  We  were 
all  night  at  work  getting  into  position  in  the  som 
bre  forests,  and  when,  as  morning  dawned,  I  rode 
along  the  front  of  the  column,  there  were  our 
Maine  regiments,  the  Vermonters,  and  the  Kegu- 
lars  in  the  front  line,  and  many  bets  were  being 
made  which  would  be  in  the  enemy's  intrench- 
ments  first.  But  what  are  the  little  white 
patches  on  all  these  overcoats  of  army-blue? 
For  the  first  time  I  saw  the  men  had  pinned  their 
names  on  their  breasts,  that  their  bodies  might 
be  recognized  in  the  carnival  of  death  they  ex 
pected,  but  did  not  shun.  That  assault  would  have 
been  a  winner  had  it  been  delivered,  I  believed 
then,  and  believe  now.  Kent  and  I  were  or 
dered  by  the  general  to  go  in  with  the  stormers, 
and,  as  it  was  not  quite  time  for  the  signal,  I 
hunted  up  corp  headquarters,  and  found  them  at 
a  negro  house  in  a  hollow.  The  boys  and  the 
English  officers  who  had  accompanied  us  had 
taken  judicious  shelter  behind  the  great  brick 
chimney  which  is  always  built  outside  at  one  end 
of  these  abodes  of  happiness.  The  enemy  were 
flinging  shells  our  way  with  great  recklessness. 
MacCartney's  men  were  pushing  his  guns  by 
hand  up  over  the  rise,  and  firing  one  by  one. 
The  general  was  on  the  crest,  leaning  against  a 


BACK  TO   CAMP.  177 

tree,  in  full  view  of  the  rebels,  looking  at  them 
with  his  glass,  and  waiting  for  the  signal  to  ad 
vance  from  far  over  to  our  left.  MacCartney 
and  Colonel  Tompkins  were  standing  near  him. 
Then  as  we  all  happened  to  be  looking,  a  round 
shot  cut  the  tree  off  as  if  with  a  knife,  a  foot 
higher  than  the  general's  head,  and  we  could  all 
testify  that  he  did  not  even  lower  his  spyglass. 
We  were  not  sorry,  the  English  officers  were 
looking,  too. 

But  now  a  mounted  officer  dashes  up,  hands 
a  dispatch  to  the  general,  and  we  soon  knew  the 
order  to  assault  was  countermanded.  Warren,  on 
the  left,  had  found  the  enemy  too  strong  in  his 
judgment,  had  suspended  his  attack,  which  ours 
was  to  follow,  and  so  the  whole  grand  plan  was 
futile.  I  cannot  say  I  was  personally  very  sorry. 
The  prospect  of  going  over  that  run  and  up  the 
long  slope  and  through  the  slashings  with  forty 
cannon,  to  say  nothing  of  musketry,  playing  our 
way,  and  going  mounted,  too,  had  not  been  com 
mending  itself  to  my  imagination  for  some  little 
time.  I  did  not  mind  going  mounted  so  much, 
for  it  is  just  as  safe,  and  one  can  be  more  useful. 
The  only  assault  I  ever  went  into  dismounted, 
I  found  myself  at  great  disadvantage  in  com 
manding  troops.  We  marched  back  to  Welford's 
again,  cold  and  disgusted,  and  began  a  long  win 
ter's  rest. 


CHAPTER  XXIX. 

"  And  bright 

The  lamps  shone  o'er  fair  women  and  brave  men  ; 
A  thousand  hearts  beat  happily ;  and  when 
Music  arose  with  its  voluptuous  swell, 
Soft  eyes  looked  love  to  eyes  which  spake  again, 
And  all  went  merry  as  a  marriage-bell." 

BYRON. 

THERE  was  something  fascinating  about  our 
winter  city  of  100,000  men.  Sheltered  by  huts 
and  tents,  warmed  by  huge  wood  fires,  wakened 
by  blare  of  bugle  and  tap  of  drum,  sleeping  often 
to  dream  of  our  dangerous  and  uncertain  future, 
mingled  with  visions  of  glory,  too,  the  young  sol 
diers  of  the  Republic,  with  a  confidence  in  the  final 
success  of  our  cause  scarcely  felt  at  the  North, 
passed  their  time  in  such  amusements  as  they 
could  invent.  Reviews,  balls,  races,  and  the  mail 
from  home  were  the  joyful  incidents  that  dispelled 
monotony.  An  occasional  trip  to  Washington, 
that  muddy  Mecca,  a  ten  days'  leave  for  home, 
where  we  could  pose  for  heroes  to  our  hearts' 
content,  made  the  time  all  too  short.  Most  of  us 
knew  nothing  of  business  not  military,  and  little 
of  politics,  and  "  to  ride,  to  shoot,  and  to  speak 
the  truth  "  nearly  filled  the  circle  of  our  acquire- 


A   ROMANTIC  RIDE.  170 

ments,  as  in  the  days  of  Cyrus  the  Great.  One 
corps  after  another  gave  a  ball  to  all  the  rest  of 
us,  and,  as  many  officers  had  their  wives  or  sis 
ters  in  camp,  there  was  a  sprinkling  of  feminine 
loveliness  among  the  many  hundreds  of  blue  uni 
forms,  and  if  a  man  got  a  partner  of  the  other  sex 
once  in  an  evening  he  thought  himself  lucky. 
The  improvised  ballrooms  were  vast,  the  bands  of 
music  large  and  good,  and  the  refreshments  most 
profuse,  but  the  male  wall-flowers  were,  alas,  in 
a  large  majority. 

The  general  was  good  enough  to  have  some 
of  his  young  lady  relatives  and  friends  down  for 
a  visit.  We  gave  up  our  best  quarters  and  did 
what  could  be  done  for  their  entertainment. 
All  our  resources  were  compelled  to  do  them 
homage.  One  of  their  number,  as  daring  and 
graceful  an  equestrienne  as  any  Virginia,  fair 
land  of  horsewomen,  could  boast,  accompanied 
me  across  Hazel  River  and  beyond  our  farthest 
pickets.  We  galloped  on  toward  the  sun,  just 
setting  behind  the  distant  Blue  Ridge,  scarcely 
recking  that  hostile  people  might  be  abroad,  till 
prudence  called  a  halt  and  bade  a  swift  return. 

As  spring  approached,  the  army  daily  became 
larger  from  fresh  enlistments  and  the  return  of 
those  who  had  been  wounded  or  exchanged  from 
prison.  Rumor  told  us  that  General  Grant  was 
coming  to  take  command.  As  we  had  sad  ex- 


180          FOLLOWING   THE   GREEK   CROSS. 

perience  of  a  Western  general  with  his  headquar 
ters  in  the  saddle,  we  were  half  inclined  not  -to 
like  it  much ;  but  the  record  and  Lincoln's  opin 
ion  were  in  his  favor,  and  when  it  became 
understood  that  he  was  to  have  his  own  way 
without  interference  from  Washington,  we  de 
termined  to  let  our  opinions  of  him  be  governed 
by  the  events  to  come.  While  never  very  en 
thusiastic  over  Grant,  the  Army  of  the  Potomac 
forgave  the  cruel  and  unnecessary  losses  they 
sustained  under  him  on  account  of  the  results 
attained.  It  was  not  that  enthusiasm  had  died 
out  among  us,  for  Sheridan  could  rouse  plenty 
of  it  afterward,  but  we  had  exhausted  much  of 
our  early  fervor,  and  envied  the  Confederates 
their  great  captain. 

Then,  too,  we  thought  people  North  hardly 
comprehended  that  the  Army  of  the  Potomac 
had  been  fighting  the  choicest  leadership  and 
the  best  army  by  far  of  the  Confederacy,  and  all 
the  time  with  a  rope  around  its  neck  tied  to 
the  doors  of  the  war  department.  But  Grant 
came,  and  brought  the  little  fellow  with  him 
named  Sheridan  to  command  the  cavalry,  and 
we  began  to  think  that  perhaps  they  would  do 
the  business  after  all.  They  reviewed  us,  corps 
after  corps,  and  emulation  as  to  who  would  make 
the  best  appearance  ran  high.  General  Torbert 
of  the  New  Jersey  brigade  was  a  very  handsome 


GRANT  AND  SHERIDAN.  181 

man  and  the  best-dressed  officer  in  the  army. 
He  had  magnificent  horses,  a  saddle  which  was 
said  to  have  cost  five  hundred  dollars,  with 
accoutrements  to  match,  and  when  he  passed  a 
reviewing  stand  it  usually  caused  a  sensation. 
As  our  corps  passed  General  Grant,  from  our 
proper  places,  we  watched  him  carefully  for  some 
expression  or  mark  of  approval,  but  so  far  as  we 
could  see  he  did  not  seem  even  to  be  thinking:. 

O 

After  we  got  back  to  camp  and  had  dis 
mounted,  Whittier  asked,  "  What  did  General 
Grant  think  of  us  ?  What  did  he  say,  General  ? 
He  made  one  remark  to  you."  "  He  said  Tor- 
bert  rode  a  good  horse,"  replied  the  general,  as 
he  sought  the  interior  of  his  tent  and  his  ever 
lasting  game  of  "  solitaire."  We  would  like  to 
know  the  exact  words  of  Napoleon  or  Wellington 
on  any  occasion,  and  posterity  may  want  to  know 
likewise  the  words  of  Grant,  the  taciturn,  and  it 
is  certain  that  to  others  than  his  very  intimates 
they  were  few  in  number. 

As  April  (1864)  passed  away,  rumor  almost 
daily  announced  an  advance  preliminary  to  the 
mighty  wrestle  that  must  take  place  between  the 
two  great  armies :  ours  much  the  larger,  but  still 
hardly  equal  to  the  Confederates  when  making 
the  attack,  on  account  of  the  rough,  tangled, 
wild,  and  densely  wooded  country,  like  none  in 
which  civilized  warfare  was  ever  before  waged, 
well  named  the  Wilderness. 


CHAPTER  XXX. 

"  Better  like  Hector  in  the  field  to  die 
Than  like  a  perfumed  Paris  turn  and  fly." 

LONGFELLOW. 

MAY  4, 1864,  we  were  up  at  2.30  A.  M.,  and 
soon  on  our  way  again  to  cross  the  Rapidan. 
These  early  awakenings  were  usually  completed 
by  my  servant  pouring  a  couple  of  canteens  of 
water  on  my  head,  followed  by  a  brisk  rub,  and 
a  dipper  of  black  coffee.  This  satisfactory  stim 
ulant  and  a  hard-tack  to  gnaw  carried  one  along, 
albeit  in  a  savage  frame  of  mind,  till  a  halt  at 
seven  or  eight  o'clock  for  breakfast.  The  birds 
were  singing,  the  fruit  trees  were  blossoming, 
and  the  scent  of  spring  was  in  the  air.  Before 
night  we  were  over  the  pontoon  bridges  and  in 
bivouac  three  miles  south  of  the  river. 

At  daybreak,  the  corps  was  pushed  out  slowly 
on  a  narrow  road  to  the  right,  and  we  found  we 
were  to  form  the  right  of  the  army.  Firing  was 
soon  heard  to  our  left,  where  the  5th  corps 
were  known  to  be.  I  rode  with  General  Sedg- 
wick  to  Meade's  headquarters,  which  were  near 
the  ruins  of  a  mill  on  the  main  road,  running 
south.  After  a  while  Meade  said,  "  Sedgwick,  I 


OVER   THE  RAPID  AN.  183 

am  short  of  staff  officers.  Will  you  lend  me 
one?"  The  general  beckoned  to  me,  and  Gen 
eral  Meade  said,  "  Go  back  to  Germania  Ford, 
and  you  will  meet  General  Grant  coming  to 
the  front.  Tell  him  Lee  is  moving  down  the 
plankroad  and  the  turnpike,  and  I  have  pushed 
Warren  and  the  6th  corps  out  to  meet  him." 
I  rode  back  as  fast  as  possible  on  a  road  full 
of  troops. 

When  I  had  gone  some  four  miles,  I  saw  a 
long  cavalcade  on  the  road  and  soon  met  General 
Grant  at  its  head.  Saluting,  I  gave  my  message 
verbatim,  and  fell  in  behind  with  Porter  and 
Babcock.  The  pace  was  soon  accelerated,  and 
when  we  got  to  Meade's  headquarters,  I  kept  as 
near  as  possible  to  hear  what  would  be  said. 
General  Grant  dismounted,  and  General  Meade 
came  forward  on  foot  to  meet  him,  and  I  heard 
him  tell  him  just  about  the  same  as  I  had, 
nothing  new  having  transpired.  Grant  said, 
"  That  is  all  right,"  and  sat  down  under  a  tree, 
lit  a  cigar,  and  began  to  whittle.  The  firing 
now  became  hotter.  I  was  sent  with  an  order 
to  General  Burnside,  and  on  my  return  General 
Meade  told  me  to  go  to  General  Ricketts,  com 
manding  our  3d  division,  and  to  put  him  in  line, 
in  what  position  I  have  now  forgotten.  On 
getting  to  Ricketts,  I  gave  him  the  order  and 
found  General  Dent,  of  Grant's  staff,  had  just 


184          FOLLOWING   THE   GREEK   CROSS. 

given  him  an  order  to  go  to  another  place.  This 
puzzled  Ricketts,  but  I  told  him  he  had  better 
obey  Meade's  order  as  the  last  one  given,  and 
dashed  back  to  see  if  I  was  right.  General 
Meade  said,  "  You  did  just  right,  sir,  but  go  back 
as  soon  as  possible  and  tell  General  liicketts  to 
obey  General  Grant's  order." 

These  words  made  an  indelible  impression  in 
my  memory,  and  show  that  Grant,  while  leaving 
the  command  practically  in  Meade's  hands  dur 
ing  this  campaign,  did  sometimes  interfere  in  de 
tails.  After  remaining  with  Meade  four  or  five 
hours,  riding  some  thirty  miles  and  tiring  out  two 
horses,  I  was  released  and  got  back  to  the  general 
to  find  the  line  of  the  6th  corps  busily  engaged  at 
close  quarters  with  the  unseen  enemy.  The  staff 
were  at  a  cross-roads.  The  enemy  had  two  or 
three  guns  up,  but  we  had  none  on  account  of  the 
dense  forest.  They  seemed  to  have  our  range, 
and  several  good  horses  had  been  knocked  out 
already.  Then  a  shell  burst  under  the  horses  of 
two  war  correspondents,  —  Jerome  D.  Stillson 
of  the  "  World  "  was  one,  —  and  they  were  ad 
vised  to  go  to  the  rear.  The  firing  redoubled  in 
front,  the  Jersey  brigade  was  double-quicking  by 
us  to  reinforce  the  line,  and  I  had  dismounted  to 
fix  my  horse's  bit,  when  a  cannon-ball  took  off 
the  head  of  a  Jerseyman  ;  the  head  struck  me, 
and  I  was  knocked  down,  covered  with  brains 


SCOUTING   ROUND    THE  ENEMY.        185 

and  blood.  Even  my  mouth,  probably  gaping  in 
wonder  where  that  shell  would  strike,  was  filled, 
and  everybody  thought  it  was  all  over  with  me. 
I  looked  up  and  saw  the  general  give  me  a  sor 
rowful  glance,  two  or  three  friends  dismounted 
to  pick  me  up,  when  I  found  I  could  get  up  my 
self,  but  I  was  not  much  use  as  a  staff  officer 
for  fully  fifteen  minutes. 

The  afternoon  passed  in  a  succession  of  charges 
and  counter-charges.  The  shrill  rebel  yell  alter 
nated  with  the  deep  hurrah  of  our  people,  and 
neither  side  gained  much,  though  we  got  a  few 
hundred  prisoners.  Among  them  was  an  officer 
of  the  18th  Mississippi  who  had  been  in  my 
hands  twice  before.  After  dark  I  was  sent  with 
a  message  to  General  Seymour,  commanding  our 
right  brigade,  and  as  they  were  firing  it  was  easy 
to  get  there,  but  only  011  foot.  To  get  back  was 
another  matter.  There  was  nothing  to  guide  one 
in  the  bushy,  briery  labyrinth.  Sense  of  direc 
tion  I  had  none,  and  so  wandered  about  till  morn 
ing,  sometimes  fancying  I  had  strayed  into  the 
enemy's  lines,  and  lying  quiet  till  I  could  catch 
the  accent  of  those  talking.  I  heard  none  of  the 
Southern  dialects,  however,  and  wet,  torn  by 
thorns,  and  hatless,  by  daybreak  I  found  my  com 
rades,  still  wearily  sleeping  by  the  roadside,  hold 
ing  their  horses,  with  their  saddles  for  pillows. 

The  firing  began  as    soon  as  light,  and   the 


186         FOLLOWING   THE   GREEK  CROSS. 

scenes  of  the  day  before  were  repeated.  Occa 
sionally  tremendous  crashes  of  musketry  off  to 
the  left  announced  that  the  other  corps  were  at 
it.  News  kept  coming  of  the  terrible  losses  of 
part  of  our  2d  division,  which  had  been  sent 
under  Getty  to  reinforce  the  2d  corps.  The 
general  was  exceedingly  anxious  about  his  right, 
and  near  noon  sent  me  scouting  to  the  river  and 
back  to  see  if  there  were  any  signs  of  the  enemy 
getting  around  us.  I  saw  nothing  and  returned 
safely.  A  few  years  ago,  General  Gordon,  who 
commanded  opposite,  told  me  that  about  the  same 
time  with  a  courier  he  did  the  same  thing,  and 
came  in  behind  our  right,  but  was  not  discovered. 
He  saw  enough  of  our  position,  however,  to  lead 
his  subsequent  attack  skillfully.  Our  3d  divi 
sion,  which  had  recently  joined  the  corps,  had 
the  right  of  our  line,  and  about  five  o'clock  Gor 
don  struck  them  square  on  the  flank.  They 
crumbled  up,  and  our  first  intimation  of  it  was 
throngs  of  excited  men  pushing  through  the 
bushes  for  the  rear.  The  general  sent  part  of 
us  off  to  the  right  to  rally  them,  and  went 
straight  down  the  road  himself,  wherever  he 
went  holding  his  line  by  his  personality.  Ar 
thur  McClellan  and  Captain  Hayden  succeeded 
with  me  in  getting  several  hundred  men  together 
in  a  clearing,  and  were  pushing  them  forward  in 
a  tolerable  line  with  several  colors,  when  a  brig- 


SCOUTING  ROUND   THE  ENEMY.  187 

adier-general,  in  full  uniform,  burst  out  of  the 
woods  and  frantically  ordered  them  to  halt,  and 
at  the  same  moment  Gordon's  troops  struck  us. 
Our  line,  having  lost  momentum,  disintegrated 
at  once.  Had  they  been  in  motion,  I  think  they 
would  have  kept  on.  Hayden  was  shot  through 
both  his  legs,  McClellan's  horse  was  killed,  and 
I  threw  myself  between  my  horse's  neck  and  the 
fire  and  barely  escaped  capture.  Soon  I  met 
a  colonel,  mounted,  whose  face  bore  the  most 
abject  expression  of  terror  I  ever  witnessed.  I 
asked  him  if  our  line  held.  He  said,  "  It  was  all 
gone."  I  asked  where  were  the  7th  Maine. 
He  answered  they  were  wiped  out.  This  was 
pretty  bitter  news,  and  I  took  the  direction  from 
which  he  had  come,  with  the  idea  of  verifying  it 
or  sharing  their  fate,  but  I  only  succeeded  in 
running  the  gauntlet  of  Gordon's  fire  again. 
Then  I  got  back  to  the  main  road.  I  found 
many  guns  in  position,  and  Crawford  and  the 
Pennsylvania  reserves  marching  up,  having 
been  sent  us  by  Grant  as  a  reinforcement.  I 
told  Crawford  where  he  had  better  put  his 
troops,  and  then  went  to  the  5th  corps  line,  and 
down  it  to  ours,  which  had  stood  like  a  rock, 
and  on  to  the  7th  Maine  holding  its  extreme 
right,  refused.  To  my  joy  I  found  the  regiment 
had  changed  front  to  rear  on  the  10th  company, 
and  with  the  43d  New  York  had  stopped 


188          FOLLOWING   THE   GREEK  CROSS. 

the  rout,  but  at  a  great  cost ;  about  half  were 
killed  and  wounded,  and  the  colonel,  lieu 
tenant-colonel,  and  major  of  the  43d  had 
been  killed  near  our  colors.  But  there  was 
brief  time  for  condolence,  and  grief  must  be  in 
dulged  later.  I  soon  found  the  general,  and 
under  his  guidance,  with  a  couple  of  lanterns, 
Kent  and  I  spent  the  night  running  out  a  new 
line  for  the  corps.  This  was  almost  perpendicu 
lar  to  our  old  line,  and  before  morning  we  had 
the  troops  on  it.  Just  after  light  we  met  the 
Vermonters,  who  had  returned  from  their  des 
perate  fighting  under  Hancock,  who,  as  soon  as 
they  saw  the  general,  broke  out  into  wild  cheer 
ing.  He  blushed  like  a  girl  as  he  saluted  their 
colors,  and  it  seemed  to  go  far  to  compensate 
him  for  the  mortification  of  the  mishap  of  the 
evening  before. 

All  the  day  we  kept  our  line  waiting  for  at 
tack,  which  did  not  come.  About  noon,  after  I 
had  snatched  a  little  sleep,  I  was  sent  off  with  a 
squadron  of  cavalry  to  our  front  with  orders  to 
find  out  if  they  were  making  any  movement  to 
get  between  us  and  the  river.  After  coming  to 
a  little  hamlet,  whose  name  I  have  forgotten, 
but  there  were  signs  of  ancient  iron  manufacture 
about  it,  and  hearing  firing  beyond,  I  left  most 
of  my  horsemen,  and  with  a  few  went  toward 
the  noise.  Posting  what  men  I  had  at  each 


A   GOOD  SAMARITAN.  189 

cross-road  for  warning  should  any  enemy  appear, 
I  finally  found  myself  in  rear  of  a  rebel  skirmish 
line  engaged  with  our  people,  and  I  could  see 
from  the  general  direction  of  the  fire  that  the 
action  was  not  resultant  from  any  move  to  get 
around  our  right.  Thinking  their  line  of  battle 
might  advance  and  catch  me,  I  swiftly  withdrew, 
picked  up  my  cavalry,  and  reported  results.  I 
saw  that  day  a  colored  division  for  the  first 
time.  They  had  been  marched  about  a  good 
deal,  what  for,  it  was  hard  to  tell.  They  were 
actually  white  with  dust,  and  as  I  passed,  a  big 
sergeant  was  prodding  those  he  could  reach  with 
the  butt  of  his  gun,  and  saying,  "  Clos'  up  dere, 
lambs." 

By  night  orders  came  to  go  southward. 
Though  we  had  had  as  much  fighting  as  we 
wanted,  this  was  better  than  crossing  back  over 
the  Rapidan,  which  rumors  of  disaster  after  dis 
aster  seemed  to  indicate.  Never  did  a  night's 
march  seem  harder.  Having  been  for  three 
days  and  two  nights  on  a  constant  nervous  strain, 
and  with  scarcely  any  sleep,  this  night  was 
a  medley  of  phantasmagoria.  Positively  light 
headed  as  well  as  ragged  and  dirty,  hungry  and 
thirsty,  I  ran  into  Charley  Whittemore's  quarter 
master's  camp  in  the  morning  and  found  for  a 
brief  time  comparative  luxury  and  then  repose. 
There  was  coffee  and  broiled  chicken,  and  a 


190          FOLLOWING    THE   GREEK   CROSS. 

chance  to  wash,  as  well  as  a  royal  welcome. 
Charley  has  joined  the  silent  majority,  but  his 
happy  disposition  and  kind  heart  remain  as  a 
pleasant  memory  to  his  surviving  friends. 

To  say  we  were  glad  to  be  out  of  the  Wilder 
ness  is  putting  it  mildly.  We  left  there  and  in 
the  jolting  ambulances  near  20,000  of  our  best 
and  bravest. 


CHAPTER  XXXI. 

"  Well  indeed  might  they  be  shaken 
By  the  weight  of  such  a  blow : 
He  has  gone,  their  prince,  their  idol, 
Whom  they  loved  and  worshiped  so." 

AYTOUN. 

DOWN  the  turnpike  road  to  Spottsylvania  on 
the  morning  of  the  8th  of  May  tramped  the 
diminished  and  dusty  column  of  the  6th  corps. 
At  its  head,  as  usual,  General  Sedgwick's  stal 
wart  form,  but  his  face  was  saddened  by  our 
losses,  and  possibly  by  a  foreboding  of  the  fate 
he  rode  so  gravely  to  meet.  In  the  afternoon 
we  caught  up  with  the  once  distant  firing,  came 
to  dead  men  by  the  roadside,  met  the  usual  pale 
and  bloody  victims  upon  stretchers,  and  soon 
General  Robinson,  commanding  the  division  of 
the  5th  corps  that  were  engaged,  minus  one  of 
his  legs.  Lee  was  in  front  of  us  and  intrenching 
fast,  so  our  tired  troops  were  got  forward  into 
line  as  soon  as  possible. 

The  dim  impression  of  that  afternoon  is  of 
things  going  wrong,  and  of  the  general  exposing 
himself  uselessly  and  keeping  us  back,  of  Grant's 
coming  up  and  taking  a  look,  of  much  bloodshed 
and  futility.  Then  the  dismal  night  in  the  tan- 


192         FOLLOWING   THE   GREEK  CROSS. 

gled  forest,  the  hooting  of  owls,  the  embrace  of 
the  wood-tick,  bang-bang  from  the  picket  line, 
then  a  dozen  more,  then  the  dreamless  repose  of 
utter  fatigue.  The  fiat  of  "  Fight  it  out  on  this 
line  if  it  takes  all  summer  "  had  been  pronounced, 
and  as  most  of  us  did  not  think  much  of  this  line 
discouragement  began  to  set  in.  We  did  not 
then  appreciate  the  policy  of  attrition,  and 
thought  our  lives  as  good  as  the  rebels',  man  for 
man. 

On  the  morning  of  the  9th,  the  corps  seemed 
to  be  in  a  fairly  good  position ;  headquarters  were 
near  a  cross-road  where  a  dropping  fire  of  sharp 
shooters  was  making  sad  havoc  with  anything  of 
ours  in  sight.  General  Morris  and  Colonel  Locke 
had  already  been  carried  to  the  rear.  The  gen 
eral  sent  me  to  advance  our  pickets  a  little,  I  sup 
pose  to  rid  us  of  this  annoyance.  I  rode  down 
to  them  through  an  open  field,  taking  a  zigzag 
course  as  fast  as  my  good  horse  could  run,  which 
no  doubt  saved  me,  as  little  spurts  of  smoke 
kept  bursting  from  the  distant  woods,  and  the 
unpleasant  whistle  of  rifle  bullets  was  very  ap 
parent. 

My  errand  done,  I  got  back  in  the  same  way, 
and  sat  down  beside  the  general  on  the  ground, 
lie  was  sitting  on  a  cracker  box  behind  a  tree, 
and  began  pulling  my  ears  affectionately,  and 
Chaffing  me  a  little  as  I  was  trying  to  fill  my 


COLONEL   M.  T.  MCMAHON 


SEDGWICK'S  DEATH.  193 

pipe,  and  to  tell  him  about  my  ride.  Then  a 
section  of  artillery  came  up  the  road  at  the  trot 
and  went  to  the  right  into  position.  He  got  up 
and  went  over  to  give  them  some  directions,  I 
thought.  Directly  I  heard  some  one  cry  out, 
"  The  general ;  "  and  hastening  over  there,  saw 
lying  on  his  back,  our  friend,  our  idol.  Blood 
was  oozing  slowly  from  a  small  wound  under 
his  eye.  McMahon  was  trying  to  raise  him  up. 
Tompkins,  Beaumont,  Whittier,  Halsted,  and 
others  of  the  staff  gathered  mournfully  around ; 
the  men  had  risen  upon  their  knees  all  along  the 
line  and  were  looking  on  in  sorrow.  Gradually 
it  dawned  upon  us  that  the  great  leader,  the 
cherished  friend,  he  that  had  been  more  than  a 
father  to  us  all,  would  no  more  lead  the  Greek 
Cross  of  the  6th  corps  in  the  very  front  of 
battle ;  that  his  noble  heart  was  stilled  at  last ! 
Our  personal  loss  was  then  paramount,  but 
many  through  the  army  said  Meade  could  have 
better  spared  his  best  division.  We  bore  him 
tenderly  to  an  ambulance,  and  followed  it  to 
army  headquarters  where  an  evergreen  bower 
had  been  prepared,  and  there  he  lay  in  simple 
state  with  the  stars  and  stripes  around  him. 
All  who  came  remained  to  weep  ;  old  grizzled 
generals,  his  comrades  for  many  years;  young 
staff  officers,  and  private  soldiers :  all  paid  this 
tribute  to  his  modest  greatness.  Three  of  the 


194          FOLLOWING   THE  GREEK  CROSS. 

staff  accompanied  the  remains  to  Cornwall  Hol 
low,  Conn.,  his  birthplace  and  home.  The  lines 
that  follow  express  somewhat  the  sympathy  be 
tween  Sedgwick  and  his  command ;  their  au 
thorship  is  unknown :  — 

TO  SEDGWICK— IN  MEMORIAM. 

A  little  valley  fenced  by  natural  walls, 

Through  which  a  brook  winds  toward  the  neighboring 

river; 

A  little  graveyard  where  the  sunlight  falls 
On  green  mounds  over  which  no  willows  shiver ; 
Nor  leaves  of  pine,  on  the  mountain's  head, 
Keep  the  wild  snowdrift  from  their  peaceful  bed ; 

A  spot  beloved  by  all  the  country  folk  — 
Here  Sedgwick  lived,  and  here,  by  many  a  token 
Of  look  and  word  and  smile  and  homely  joke, 
They  kept  his  image  in  their  hearts  unbroken ; 
Though  few  his  visits  now  to  that  old  home 
Whose  doors  afar  invited  all  to  come. 

Chief  of  the  Sixth  Corps !     In  that  silent  home 
One  gentle  spirit  haunting  it  there  lingers ; 
Her  eye  kindles  and  her  thoughts  arouse 
At  midnight  dreaming  of  thee,  and  her  fingers 
Grasp  the  brief  telegrams  that  thrill  the  world 
Whene'er  the  Sixth  Corps'  banner  is  unfurled. 

The  clouds  wept  that  morning  when  we  met 
At  the  dear  mansion  house  in  Cornwall  Hollow ; 
W*e  said  but  little,  though  our  cheeks  were  wet 
With  the  proud  tears  that  evermore  will  follow 
The  hearse  that  carries  home  the  noble  dead ; 
And  here  we  laid  thee  in  this  lowly  bed. 


IN  MEMORIAM.  195 

Let  the  dust  sleep  among  its  kindred  dust  J 
Father  and  mother,  loving  friend  and  neighbor ; 
And  let  the  mountain  pine,  true  to  its  trust, 
Even  like  the  hero,  buffet  and  belabor 
The  wintry  blast  upon  the  distant  hill : 
Forever  hallowed  be  that  spot  and  still ! 

Yet  he  sleeps  not  there  ;  for  soul  like  his 
Sleeps  never  after  death.     At  once  it  enters 
Into  the  living  forms  of  all  that  is ; 
Haunting  the  ages,  lighting  up  the  centres 
Of  crumbling  states,  of  waning,  wasting  creeds, 
And  touching  dead  shapes  with  living  deeds. 

We  bid  thee  farewell !     Cold  as  we  are 
We  welcome  thee  in  all  familiar  places ; 
We  see  thee  in  the  eagle  or  the  star ; 
And  hail  thee  in  a  thousand  happy  faces 
That  smile  upon  our  flag  —  on  land  or  sea, 
The  symbol  yet  of  faith  and  type  of  thee. 


CHAPTER  XXXII. 

"  They  fell  devoted,  but  undying- ; 
The  very  gale  their  names  seemed  sighing ; 
The  waters  murmured  of  their  name ; 
The  woods  were  peopled  with  their  fame ; 
Their  spirits  wrapt  the  dusky  mountain ; 
Their  memory  sparkled  in  the  fountain  ; 
The  meanest  rill,  the  mightiest  river, 
Rolled  mingling  with  their  fame  forever." 

Siege  of  Corinth. 

WHEN  one  has  been  present  at  a  dreadful  and 
sinister  event,  and  has  at  the  same  time  met  a 
grievous  loss,  the  springs  of  life  are  loosened  for 
a  while,  and  even  the  brightness  of  the  world 
is  indescribably  dreary.  Till  the  elasticity  of 
youth  resumed  its  sway,  the  rain-sodden  woods  of 
Virginia  seemed  to  cover  but  pathways  where 
all  hope  was  lost.  General  Wright,  since  the 
accomplished  chief  engineer  of  the  army,  assumed 
command  of  the  corps,  and  announced  to  us  all 
that  we  should  retain  our  places.  The  evening 
of  the  fatal  9th  of  May  was  spent  in  organizing 
an  attack  of  twelve  picked  regiments  to  take 
place  at  dawn  the  next  morning,  and  to  be  com 
manded  by  Colonel  Emery  Upton,  ambitious  to 
gain  his  star. 

My   regiment,    the    7th   Maine,  was   one   of 


UPTON'S  ASSAULT.  197 

the  chosen,  and  I  coaxed  McMahon,  chief  of 
staff,  to  substitute  another.  They  never  knew 
it,  and  since  I  have  not  been  quite  certain  if  I 
did  right.  It  seemed  to  me  they  had  lost  so 
cruelly,  but  I  certainly  should  not  have  liked  it 
had  I  been  the  colonel  and  longing  for  advance 
ment. 

The  morning  of  the  10th  dawned  wet  and  pale, 
and,  as  soon  as  it  was  light  enough  to  see,  away 
went  the  twelve  regiments  at  the  double-quick, 
through  the  woods  with  a  rousing  cheer,  and 
poured  over  the  enemy's  breastworks,  capturing 
several  guns  and  a  thousand  prisoners.  There 
they  hung  for  a  long  time,  unable  to  take  the 
second  line,  and  waiting  for  the  support  they 
had  every  reason  to  expect ;  it  did  not  come. 
Then  they  were  obliged  to  retire,  but  in  good 
order,  and  with  honor  saved.  At  Marye's 
Heights  and  Rappahannock  Station  similar  gal 
lant  charges  were  strongly  supported,  and  why 
was  it  not  so  here  ?  It  is  bootless  now  to  inquire, 
but  how  it  would  have  hurt  our  dead  chieftain ! 
The  afternoon  passed  in  skirmishing  and  artillery 
fire,  and  that  night  seven  of  our  pickets  were 
brought  in  from  the  line,  crazy  from  want  of 
sleep,  and,  as  they  were  kept  awhile  by  a  camp 
fire  before  being  sent  to  the  rear,  the  scene  was 
mournfully  pathetic. 

The  next  day  was  comparatively  uneventful. 


198          FOLLOWING   THE   GREEK   CROSS. 

Rutzer,  our  headquarters  purveyor,  got  up  with 
some  canned  goods,  and  our  appetites,  which 
survived  all  misfortunes,  were  appeased  for  a 
time.  That  evening  we  got  word  that  Hancock 
was  to  assault  the  works  at  Spottsylvania  Court 
House,  on  our  left,  and  that  we  were  to  be  ready 
to  support  him.  Little  could  we  realize  as  we 
wrapped  ourselves  in  our  blankets,  to  dream  of 
home,  that  the  morrow  was  to  bring  the  bloodiest 
battle  ever  fought  on  this  continent.  Before 
dawn  we  rose,  and  as  the  first  gray  light  dis 
played  a  world  of  mist,  the  rattling  volleys 
directed  on  the  2d  corps  began,  and  ours  began 
the  march  toward  them  some  few  miles  away. 
The  whole  corps  moved  out,  and  the  general  left 
me  in  charge  of  eighteen  of  our  guns,  which 
were  directed  to  fire  steadily  at  the  enemy  op 
posite.  They  were  entirely  without  support. 
Here  for  some  time  I  remained,  speculating  what 
the  varying  sounds  of  battle  meant,  and  soon 
learning  that  Hancock  had  been  successful,  that 
he  had  taken  Johnson's  division  prisoners  with 
twenty  guns,  and  that  our  people  were  engaged. 
This  was  delightful.  But  what  if  they  should  at 
tack  us  here  ?  was  my  anxious  thought.  By  nine 
o'clock,  however,  a  lot  of  heavy  artillery  regi 
ments  came  up,  and  Arthur  McClellan  galloped 
to  release  me,  and  to  tell  of  fighting  that,  even 
to  his  large  experience,  was  terrific.  Now  to  the 


HANCOCK'S  ASSAULT,  199 

corps  with  all  speed,  and,  as  they  appeared 
through  the  ragged  woods,  I  saw  in  the  smoke 
the  gallant  New  Jersey  brigade  reduced  to  a 
frazzle,  with  their  colors  close  together.  Sight 
and  sound  faded ;  I  was  on  the  ground,  my  or 
derly  and  his  horse  dead  beside  me,  and  as  sense 
returned,  I  was  mounted  and  away.  My  horse 
had  stepped  in  a  hole  and  thrown  me  over  his 
head,  but  the  sensation  of  death  was  not  far 
absent. 

On  reaching  headquarters,  which  were  in  a 
hollow  a  little  behind  the  line,  I  found  we  were 
trying  to  hold  part  of  the  log  breastworks  Han 
cock  had  taken,  against  desperate  efforts  of  large 
forces  of  Lee's  army.  Indeed,  in  a  distance  of 
less  than  a  mile,  the  bulk  of  both  armies  were 
hurled  at  each  other  for  twenty- two  hours.  Gen 
eral  Wright  sent  me  to  General  Meade  to  say 
that  we  must  have  reinforcements,  that  the  corps 
could  not  hold  much  longer.  It  was  like  a  run 
ning  race  to  army  headquarters,  and  when  I  got 
no  satisfaction  from  General  Meade  it  seemed 
to  my  excitement  that  I  was  responsible  for  it  all. 
On  returning,  I  came  upon  General  Humphreys 
on  the  road,  and  told  him  my  trouble.  Said  he, 
"  Do  you  see  that  column  of  troops  moving  over 
there  ?  That  is  Kitchen's  brigade  of  heavy  ar 
tillery;  take  him  to  support  General  Wright." 
The  authority  of  the  chief  of  staff  of  the  army 


200          FOLLOWING   THE    GREEK   CROSS. 

was  good  enough  for  me,  so  I  took  Kitchen  to 
our  corps  line,  where  he  soon  lost  his  leg  and  a 
large  part  of  his  command.  After  the  war,  on 
meeting  General  Humphreys,  when,  as  chief  of 
engineers  of  the  army,  he  was  inspecting  the 
forts  on  the  Maine  coast,  I  asked  him  how  it 
was  that  I  could  get  reinforcements  from  him 
when  the  commanding  general  would  give  me 
none,  and  he  told  me  General  Meade  was  suffer 
ing  terribly  that  day  from  nervous  dyspepsia 
and  had  put  him  in  charge. 

So  the  day  wore  on  apace.  Its  memories  are 
of  bloodshed  surpassing  all  former  experiences, 
a  desperation  in  the  struggle  never  before  wit 
nessed,  of  mad  rushes,  and  of  as  sudden  repulses, 
of  guns  raised  in  the  air  with  the  butts  up  and 
fired  over  log  walls,  of  our  flags  in  shreds,  and 
at  the  short  intervals  which  show  what  small 
regiments  are  left.  It  fell  to  my  lot  to  order  a 
section  of  artillery  into  battery  to  assist  our 
musketry  with  canister.  I  sent  them,  as  ordered, 
over  a  crest,  but  they  did  not  seem  to  fire,  though 
it  was  little  remarked  in  the  pandemonium  of 
sound.  Soon  night  fell,  but  the  next  morning 
when  I  saw  them  again  they  had  not  got  into 
battery.  Each  piece  and  caisson  were  wheeled 
half  round,  and  every  man  and  horse  were  there, 
and  they  lay  as  if  waiting  the  resurrection. 

The  night  was  dark  and  rainy,  but  the  strug- 


THE  BLOODIEST  BATTLE  OF  THE  WAR.  201 

gle  did  not  abate.  About  nine  o'clock  General 
Wright  told  me  to  find  General  Griffin  of  the 

O 

5th  corps,  and  tell  him  to  come  in  in  support, 
or  our  line  must  soon  give  way.  But  to  find 
Griffin  was  another  matter.  For  an  hour  or  two 
I  rode  till  I  became  completely  lost.  The  only 
light  was  the  firing  and  the  dull  glimmer  of  the 
faces  of  the  dead.  Feeling  that  the  fate  of  all 
depended  on  me,  I  was  wrought  almost  to  mad 
ness,  and  to  get  niy  senses  again  I  dismounted 
and  sat  down  on  the  ground  a  while,  holding  my 
horse's  bridle  and  my  aching  head  till  reason 
resumed  its  sway.  Accident  brought  me  to  Gen 
eral  Griffin  at  last,  but  he  refused  to  obey,  not 
being  under  General  Wright's  orders.  He  was 
technically  all  right,  and  as  the  corps  still  held 
on,  no  harm  came  of  it.  At  two  in  the  morning, 
after  twenty-two  hours  of  fighting,  the  enemy 
withdrew,  and  we  all  couched  in  the  mud  where 
we  were,  to  wait  for  daylight. 

I  never  expect  to  be  fully  believed  when  I 
tell  what  I  saw  of  the  horrors  of  Spottsylvania, 
because  I  should  be  loth  to  believe  it  myself, 
were  the  case  reversed.  The  large  tree  trunk 
now  in  the  war  department  cut  off  by  musket 
balls  bears  witness  to  the  intensity  and  contin 
uance  of  the  fire.  Early  next  morning  we  went 
to  visit  the  scene  of  the  fighting.  The  breast 
works  were  of  heavy  logs,  and  they  had  trav- 


202  FOLLOWING   THE   GREEK   CROSS. 

erses,  that  is,  other  short  breastworks  perpen 
dicular  to  them  to  protect  from  a  flanking  fire. 
The  rebels  were  mostly  between  these  traverses, 
and  they  lay  two,  three,  and  sometimes  four 
tiers  deep,  the  lowest  tier  nearly  covered  by 
blood  and  water.  The  wounded  were  often 
writhing  under  two  or  three  of  the  dead.  I  un 
dertook  to  relieve  a  young  officer,  who  was 
nearly  gone,  of  the  weight  pressed  upon  him, 
but  he  said  ;  shaking  his  head,  "  You  have  con 
quered  ;  now  I  die ; "  and  suited  the  action  to 
the  word. 

Nor  was  the  scene  where  lay  the  boys  in  blue 
less  cruel.  They  were  mostly  in  the  open,  — 
many  nothing  but  a  lump  of  meat  or  clot  of 
gore  where  countless  bullets  from  both  armies 
had  torn  them  ;  all  ploughed  with  many  wounds, 
but  each  by  himself  on  the  greensward,  lying 
in  his  last  line  of  battle.  Further  on,  where  our 
people  held  the  traverses,  the  same  sickening 
scenes;  and  the  survivors,  inured  to  all  war's 
horrors,  found  new  horrors  there ! 


CHAPTER  XXXIII. 

"  Join  the  cavalry." 


Army  Song. 


LEE  held  upon  Spottsylvania  with  a  grip  that 
no  efforts  of  ours  could  unloosen.  It  had  be 
come  a  veritable  woodland  fortress.  His  lines 
were  tried  at  every  point  from  the  18th  to  the 
18th  of  May.  On  the  14th,  during  an  attempt 
to  flank  his  right  wing,  Upton's  brigade  was  sent 
forward  from  the  Beverly  House  to  occupy  a 
clearing  on  a  distant  hillside  that  promised  to  be 
a  good  position,  and  I  was  sent  with  him.  A 
venerable  native  went  along  as  guide,  and  hardly 
had  we  debouched  from  the  winding  and  rocky 
ascent  when  a  rebel  division  charged  us. 

Our  old  guide  was  the  first  to  fall,  but  there 
was  no  time  to  be  horrified  at  his  white  hair 
streaked  with  blood.  We  were  broken  before 
having  a  fair  chance  to  form.  The  5th  Maine 
fought  its  way  over  to  the  left  and  got  off  with 
little  loss.  I  followed  them  in  the  falling  dark 
ness,  and  hearing  rapid  vociferation  from  a  neigh 
boring  thicket,  I  discovered  a  sergeant  with  both 
legs  shattered,  and  crazy  from  a  wound  in  the 
head.  He  fancied  he  was  in  a  class-meeting  at 


204          FOLLOWING   THE   GREEK  CROSS. 

home,  and  was  preaching  to  an  imaginary  con 
gregation  at  the  top  of  his  lungs,  while  the 
"  whip-poor-will's  complaint "  could  be  heard 
from  the  neighboring  grove.  The  pathetic 
mournfulness  of  it  all  followed  me  long. 

In  these  days  the  Yankee  soldiers  went  grimly 
to  their  doom  in  every  charge,  and  the  inner 
voice  of  the  army  was,  "  How  long,  O  Lord,  how 
long!" 

On  the  18th  of  May  we  made  a  bloody  and 
unsuccessful  attack,  but  were  unable  to  pierce 
the  broad  tree  slashings  that  surrounded  the  en 
emy.  A  little  before  this,  Lieutenant  Frank 
Glazier  of  my  regiment  had  an  enormous  swelling 
come  on  his  neck  that  resembled  the  goitre,  but 
no  one  knew  what  it  was.  I  saw  him  come  out 
of  this  fight  bleeding  like  a  pig  from  a  gunshot 
wound  through  this  swelling;  but  the  next  day 
it  had  disappeared,  leaving  but  an  ordinary  scar 
behind,  and  Frank  as  rugged  and  cheerful  as 
ever.  Arthur  McClellan's  bay  horse  had  a  shell 
pass  directly  through  him  as  I  happened  to  be 
looking.  The  distressing  cry  seemed  to  tear  our 
ears,  while  the  collapse  of  the  beautiful  animal 
was  a  picture  of  pain  framed  by  the  smoking 
forest. 

Now  another  flanking  movement  gave  a  respite 
and  a  hope,  and  our  shattered  columns  streamed 
out  to  the  left  toward  the  South  Anna  Kiver. 


BATTLE   OF  MASSAPONAX  CHURCH.          205, 

While  on  the  march,  word  came  that  a  party  of 
the  enemy's  cavalry  were  on  our  flank.  We  had 
with  us  some  hundreds  of  convalescent  men  from, 
the  cavalry  corps  who  could  not  join  their  com 
mands,  as  Sheridan  was  far  away  somewhere 
fighting.  Most  of  them  were  armed  with  Henry 
rifles,  a  new  breech-loading  sixteen-shooter.  I 
was  directed  to  organize  them  as  best  I  could  and 
go  out  to  drive  away  this  cavalry  force.  Accom 
panied  by  Lieutenant  R.  S.  Mackenzie,  just  from 
West  Point,  who  had  a  kind  of  a  map  of  the 
country,  I  tasted  the  joys  of  an  independent  cav 
alry  command  for  the  first  time.  With  the  reg 
ulation  reserve  on  the  road  and  with  skirmishers 
thickly  deployed  in  front,  on  arriving  at  Massa- 
ponax  church,  we  received  a  few  harmless  shots 
and  all  hands  began  to  fire  back.  I  could  soon 
see  that  the  Johnnies  had  not  stopped  upon  the 
order  of  their  going,  and  had  left  a  few  dead 
horses  behind.  Then  for  a  long  time  we  rode 
back  and  forth  behind  our  line  trying  to  stop  our 
firing.  It  was  no  use.  The  rattling  volleys  con 
tinued  till  the  ammunition  was  all  gone,  and  Gen 
eral  Wright,  supposing  us  heavily  engaged,  sent 
out  a  brigade  and  a  battery  to  our  assistance. 
It  was  some  time  before  I  heard  the  last  of  the 
"  battle  of  Massaponax  church,"  but  it  was  quite 
a  lesson  on  the  improper  use  of  rapid-firing  arms. 
That  brilliant  soldier,  and  in  later  years  renowned 


206          FOLLOWING   THE    GREEK   CROSS. 

Indian  fighter,  General  Mackenzie,  here  received 
his  baptism  of  fire,  and  then  began  between  us  a 
friendship  that  grew  always  warmer,  till  his  in 
scrutable  fate  found  him.  The  next  day  I  was 
sent  out  again,  and  this  time  we  had  better  luck. 
When  we  "came  upon  the  Confederate  cavalry, 
they  were  posted  on  a  good  rise  of  ground  by 
some  farm  buildings  and  evidently  intended  to 
stay  there.  I  sent  about  a  hundred  mounted 
men  around  through  the  woods  to  where  their 
flank  ought  to  be  with  orders  to  charge  and  cheer 
when  they  struck  it,  and  we  would  do  likewise 
as  soon  as  their  noise  was  heard.  These  simple 
tactics  worked  to  a  charm.  As  soon  as  carbines 
commenced  to  crack  over  in  the  open  woods  to 
the  left  and  front,  we  rushed  them  and  ran  them 
about  two  miles,  till  they  got  across  some  river, 
the  Po,  I  think,  and  their  friends  on  the  other 
side  began  to  throw  canister  at  us.  Then,  loaded 
with  spoils,  bacon,  chickens,  and  other  good 
things  to  eat,  we  returned  to  camp,  and  I  sighed 
to  think  I  had  not  joined  the  cavalry  in  the  be 
ginning. 

I  will  not  attempt  to  recount  the  numerous 
conflicts  that  we  took  part  in  during  the  march 
southward.  I  would  rather  speak  of  lazy  inter 
vals,  exploring  ancient  Virginia  mansions,  built 
when  feudal  magnificence  held  sway  in  these  fer 
tile  valleys,  and  now  left  by  their  owners  in  care 


DOCTOR  FISKE.  207 

of  faithful  slaves  alone.  We  found  an  ice  house 
on  every  plantation  now.  While  riding  over  a 
hot,  dusty  plain  not  far  from  Hanover  Junction, 
I  saw  a  man  walking  by  a  wagon  train  far  in 
front,  and  said  to  myself,  "  If  I  did  not  know  he 
was  in  Bath  I  should  say  that  was  the  Rev.  Dr. 
Fiske."  On  getting  nearer  it  proved  to  be  Dr. 
Fiske,  who  had  come  out  to  do  what  good  he 
could,  and  the  train  belonged  to  the  Christian 
Commission.  He  was  ill,  footsore,  and  weary, 
and  had  been  doing  his  own  cooking.  I  mounted 
him  on  my  orderly's  horse,  and  soon  the  best  our 
headquarters  offered  was  none  too  good  for  him. 
While  with  us  he  chanced  to  get  under  fire  and 
saw  men  killed  near  him,  and  his  coolness  and 
courage  were  very  much  admired.  Had  he 
chanced  to  adopt  the  military  profession  instead 
of  the  church  militant,  I  have  never  doubted  that 
this  delicate  and  refined  clergyman  would  have 
made  a  great  soldier. 


CHAPTER  XXXIV. 

"  Swift  to  be  hurled  — 
Anywhere,  anywhere, 
Out  of  the  world." 

HOOD. 
"  Deep  into  that  darkness  peering 

Long  I  stood  there,  wondering,  fearing." 

POE. 

AFTER  we  got  to  Hanover  Junction,  where  the 
rebels  managed  to  capture  our  efficient  head 
quarters  quartermaster,  Platt,  with  many  green 
backs  in  his  possession,  I  was  sent  forward  to 
communicate  our  presence  and  advance  to  Gen 
eral  Sheridan,  fighting  hard  at  Cold  Harbor,  to 
hold  it  till  the  army  came  up.  I  had  seen  him  be 
fore,  but  not  to  speak  to  him,  and  I  found  him  the 
most  nervy,  wiry  incarnation  of  business,  and 
business  only,  I  had  yet  met.  Two  of  his  divi 
sions  were  fighting,  dismounted,  and  seemed  very 
much  like  infantry  except  for  their  short  jackets 
and  carbines.  We  had  a  belief  in  the  infantry 
that  those  carbines  would  not  hit  anything,  and  I 
confirmed  the  belief  so  far  as  I  was  concerned  by 
borrowing  one  from  a  wounded  man  and  firing  in 
the  line  for  half  an  hour.  To  be  sure  there  was 
nothing  but  smoke  to  fire  at  as  a  general  thing, 
and  though  in  dead  earnest  then,  I  am  happy  in 


AT  COLD  HARBOR.  209 

the  conviction  that  I  did  not  hurt  anybody.  By 
and  by  the  head  of  the  6th  corps  came  up  and 
relieved  the  cavalry  that  night,  getting  into  line 
of  battle  and  digging  rifle  pits  all  along  the  line 
before  sleeping. 

The  next  day  the  Army  of  the  Potomac  was  all 
in  position  in  front  of  the  line  of  intrenchments 
many  miles  long,  held  by  Lee,  near  the  old 
battlefield  of  Gaines's  Mills,  where  Porter  and 
the  5th  corps  so  distinguished  themselves.  We 
found  an  ice  house  where  our  quarters  were 
located,  and  entertained  Grant  and  Meade  and 
their  staffs ;  and  many  others  were  rescued  for 
a  brief  interval  from  the  stifling  heat  and  dust. 
Among  them  my  old  friend,  Dr.  Mitchell,  whom 
I  was  very  glad  to  see  once  more. 

In  the  afternoon  up  came  the  18th  corps  in  a 
tired  column  after  a  long  march  from  Butler's 
army.  My  old  commander,  "  Baldy  "  Smith,  was 
at  the  head,  and  it  seemed  good  to  have  his  cool 
and  sagacious  brain  added  to  our  leadership.  To 
ward  night  we  attacked  in  conjunction  with  the 
18th  corps,  and  while  the  attack  generally  spent 
itself  against  breastworks  in  vain,  some  six  hun 
dred  prisoners  came  in  which  my  company  of 
cavalry  promptly  gathered  and  placed  to  the 
credit  of  the  6th  corps.  The  next  morning  I 
heard  General  Smith  was  hunting  after  his  pris 
oners,  so  I  found  him  near  his  headquarters 


210          FOLLOWING   TEE   GREEK  CROSS. 

wagon  and  told  him  I  had  them  safe  for  him,  as 
I  had  ascertained  they  were  mostly  taken  by  the 
18th  corps.  He  was  very  much  delighted  and 
treated  his  young  subordinate  as  an  equal  for  the 
time  we  were  together.  On  getting  back  to  our 
headquarters  I  found  an  enterprising  photogra 
pher  was  taking  a  picture  of  them  and  the  staff. 
I  got  into  line,  and  while  the  picture  was  being 
taken,  two  mortar  shells  dropped  behind  our 
tents.  I  have  it  now,  and  it  is  curious  to  see  in 
what  rough  and  uncouth  costumes,  and  in  what 
leanness  of  form  and  visage  the  whole  party 
stand  forth.  All  were  like  athletes  trained 
down  to  the  last  limit  for  some  great  contest  of 
brawn  and  muscle.  General  Wright  in  the  cen 
tre,  with  the  corps  flag  above  him ;  then  Henry 
Farrar,  life  of  the  camp  and  warm-hearted 
friend ;  Charley  Whittier,  radiant  in  apparel, 
and  since  a  swell  and  a  success  in  two  con 
tinents  ;  Halsted  and  Whittlesey,  soon  to  cross 
the  dark  river  ;  Colonel  Tompkins,  chief  of  artil 
lery,  tall  and  handsome  and  of  unrivaled  excel 
lence  in  his  profession ;  Kent,  able  soldier  at  all 
points  and  exquisite  gentleman  as  well ;  the  laugh 
ing,  plucky  son  of  Oliver  Wendell  Holmes,  now 
an  ornament  to  the  bench ;  Arthur  McClellan, 
who  knew  no  fear  and  against  whom  has  never 
been  reproach ;  "Cub"  Russell,  cool  and  debo 
nair  ;  Steve  Manning,  the  reliable  chief  quarter- 


t  1,      _ 


A  FLAG   OF  TRUCE  AT  MIDNIGHT.         211 

master  ;  and  Walter  Franklin,  towering  a  head 
above  us  in  height,  and  in  some  other  things  too. 
Several  of  the  best  and  dearest  of  Sedgwick's 
staff  were  absent,  —  McMahon,  Pierce,  Beau 
mont,  and  Andrews,  —  but  we  could  not  all  be 
off  duty  at  once,  even  in  a  lull  at  Cold  Harbor. 

This  battle  was  a  series  of  attacks  all  along 
the  line,  which  was  five  or  six  miles  long.  Its 
management  would  have  shamed  a  cadet  in  his 
first  year  at  West  Point.  Seldom  could  we  gain 
a  foothold  anywhere  even  for  a  moment.  Col 
onel  James  McMahon,  brother  of  our  chief  of 
staff,  at  the  head  of  the  Corcoran  Legion,  placed 
his  flag  over  their  works,  but  his  brother  recog 
nized  him  during  a  flag  of  truce  the  next  day 
only  by  his  sleeve  buttons.  It  is  a  maxim  of 
war  that  a  direct  attack  against  works  held  by 
good  troops  can  seldom,  if  ever,  be  successful, 
and  at  Cold  Harbor  the  attack  was  no  heavier 
at  one  place  than  another.  That  we  lost  15,000 
men  and  the  enemy  1,500  is  commentary  enough 
on  the  generalship  of  the  commanding  general 
at  this  stage  of  his  career. 

While  the  burials  were  going  on  between  the 
lines  during  a  flag  of  truce,  nine  rebel  privates 
strayed  into  our  camps  by  mistake,  were  arrested 
and  sent  to  army  headquarters.  From  there 
they  came  under  guard  to  the  6th  corps  with  or 
ders  from  General  Meade  to  send  them  back  at 


212          FOLLOWING   THE   GREEK   CROSS. 

once  by  flag  of  truce.  When  the  order  came  to 
me  to  take  them  back,  it  was  pitch  dark.  How 
to  make  a  flag  of  truce  visible  I  did  not  know, 
but  the  order  was  imperative,  so  I  took  them  to 
our  first  division,  General  Russell's,  which  was 
lying  in  their  fortified  lines,  a  brigade  in  each 
line,  and  the  lines  connected  by  zigzag  pits. 
Russell  said  there  was  no  way  to  get  them  over, 
but  I  pushed  on  to  the  first  line,  the  Jersey  bri 
gade  under  Penrose.  They  were  lying  down  and 
firing  as  hard  as  they  could  at  the  enemy's  pits 
in  the  dark  some  two  hundred  yards  off,  and  the 
enemy  were  returning  the  fire  with  interest. 

Indeed  the  same  thing  was  going  on  for  some 
three  miles,  and  it  would  have  been  impossible 
for  anything  to  live  between  those  rows  of  breast 
works.  I  asked  Penrose  to  stop  his  fire  and  see 
if  the  rebels  would  not  stop,  and  sure  enough  in 
a  little  while  ithey  did,  only  occasionally  some 
fool  would  discharge  his  piece.  At  last  I  climbed 
over  the  works  and  stepped  out  into  the  unknown 
darkness  beyond.  Penrose  came,  too,  and  when 
we  had  groped  some  hundred  yards  I  sung  out, 
"  I  want  to  see  the  commander  of  the  rebel  line." 
"  Say  Confederate,  for  God's  sake,"  said  Pen- 
rose.  I  repeated  my  call,  and  it  was  answered 
quite  near,  "  What  do  you  want?"  I  told  the 
reason  of  my  coming,  and  they  said,  "  Wait  till 
we  communicate  with  General  Lee."  Now  there 
was  nothing  else  to  do  but  wait,  and  Penrose 


A  FLAG    OF  TRUCE  AT  MIDNIGHT.         213 

had  gone  back,  and  the  thought  came  to  me 
what  it  meant  waiting  there.  If  any  irresponsi 
ble  party  fired  his  gun,  it  would  all  commence 
again  just  as  it  was  going  on  to  the  right  and 
left  in  vistas  as  far  as  I  could  see,  and  then 
there  was  no  chance  whatever  for  me.  So  I 
crouched  in  a  half-filled  grave  and  waited,  de 
spite  the  stench  and  horror  of  it  all.  It  seemed 
hours  before  any  one  came,  probably  it  was  but 
a  few  minutes,  and  all  the  time  black  forms 
seemed  to  be  encircling  me  in  the  blacker  dark 
ness.  I  could  hear  the  low  buzz  from  the  rebel 
rifle  pits  close  by,  in  the  scarce  intervals  of  the 
firing  right  and  left.  At  last  two  of  the  black 
forms  proved  real,  and  were  the  colonel  and  his 
adjutant  of  a  Mississippi  regiment  commanding 
the  brigade  just  in  front.  I  soon  told  my  story, 
and,  confident  there  would  be  no  firing  now,  we 
sat  down  on  the  ground  and  exchanged  sup 
plies  and  stories  for  a  time.  Then  I  went  back 
for  my  nine  rebels,  and  we  had  to  put  them  out 
by  force  over  the  rifle  pits,  they  so  dreaded  the 
chance  of  the  fire  beginning.  Right  glad  was  I 
to  see  the  last  of  them,  as  at  two  o'clock  in  the 
morning  I  wended  my  way  through  the  zigzags 
to  a  dusty  resting  place  beside  the  standard  of 
the  6th  corps.  The  roar  of  musketry  was  going 
on  everywhere  else  as  far  as  one  could  see,  but 
Penrose's  front  was  quite  still,  according  to 
arrangement  with  the  Mississippi  colonel. 


CHAPTER  XXXV. 

"  They  flee  before  our  fierce  attack ! 

They  fall !  they  spread  in  broken  surges. 
Now,  comrades  bear  our  wounded  back, 
And  leave  the  foeman  to  his  dirges." 

STEDMAN. 

IT  is  very  interesting  to  revisit  the  battlefields 
of  the  war,  but  I  never  heard  any  one  who  was 
engaged  there  express  a  wish  to  see 'Cold  Har 
bor  again.  Its  vast  upheavals  of  earth  in  fort 
and  rifle  pit,  in  traverse  and  covered  way,  may 
now  have  yielded  to  the  sun,  the  rain,  and  the 
plough,  but  it  remains  in  memory  the  Golgotha 
of  American  history.  Gladly  we  turned  our 
backs  upon  it,  and  a  day's  march  put  us  in 
camp  upon  the  banks  of  the  beautiful  James 
River,  where  the  evening  was  an  idyl.  The 
luxurious  vegetation,  the  scent  of  the  flowers, 
the  fireflies'  glimmer,  with  the  sweet  strains  of 
the  Jersey  band,  made  a  welcome  contrast  to 
our  late  surroundings. 

The  next  day,  while  the  corps  was  crossing 
on  the  pontoon  bridges,  we  boarded  a  "  double- 
end  er  "  commanded  by  a  brother  of  our  Beau 
mont,  and  stared  in  envy  at  the  white  trousers 
and  fine  uniforms  of  the  officers.  After  receiv- 


MR.   LINCOLN.  215 

ing  the  usual  hospitality  of  the  navy,  we  were 
given  some  blue  regulation  sailor  shirts,  and  for 
months  I  found  them  a  most  acceptable  substi 
tute  for  the  army  blouse.  I  remained  for  some 
time  after  the  corps  had  crossed  with  some  cav 
alry  to  pick  up  stragglers,  and  after  crossing  the 
river  was  sent  to  Bermuda  Hundred,  where  part 
of  the  corps  had  gone  to  support  General  Butler. 
There  was  a  fight  threatening  on  his  lines  that 
night,  and  it  materialized  to  some  extent,  but  the 
only  impressions  of  it  left  me  are  that  General 
Butler  was  very  nervous,  and  that  his  headquar 
ters  were  a  long  way  from  his  line  of  battle.  We 
soon  moved  toward  Petersburg,  and  our  tents 
were  pitched  again,  after  reposing  in  the  wagons 
for  many  weeks,  on  a  good-sized  hill  which  gave 
a  fine  view  of  the  rebel  intrenchments,  and  the 
distant  spires  of  the  city.  I  was  awakened  early 
in  the  morning  by  a  shell  striking  near,  and  got 
out  to  find  it  had  killed  my  orderly,  who  was 
asleep  in^a  shelter  tent  behind  mine,  and  I  saw 
the  tall  form  of  Mr.  Lincoln  slowly  walking  away 
to  a  more  sheltered  place.  He  had  a  long-tailed 
black  coat  on  and  a  rather  battered  high  hat, 
and  he  was  leading  his  little  son  Tad  by  the 
hand,  occasionally  looking  back  toward  the  rebel 
batteries  to  see  if  another  shot  was  coming. 
But  once  again  in  life  were  the  6th  corps  des 
tined  to  see  him,  and  we  realized  this  as  little  as 


216          FOLLOWING   THE   GREEK   CROSS. 

we  then  did  that  he  was  the  great  man  of  the 
century,  beside  whose  all  reputations  are  dim. 

On  June  21st  we  followed  the  2d  corps  in  a 
march  to  the  left.  The  corps  got  into  line  on 
their  left  toward  the  Weldon  Railroad,  but  there 
was  no  connection  between  the  two  corps.  The 
next  day  was  extremely  hot,  and  there  seemed 
to  be  a  considerable  force  in  our  front.  Firing 
began  sharply  on  our  right.  Soon  it  ceased,  and 
in  twenty  minutes  broke  out  again  a  little 
nearer  the  centre,  then  shortly  after  about  the 
centre.  I  had  a  theory,  and  wanted  to  test  it, 
that  the  enemy  were  accustomed  to  do  this  till 
they  could  find  our  flank,  or  cavalry  on  it,  for 
they  could  easily  find  them  by  the  carbine  fire  ; 
and  here  was  the  opportunity  to  prove  my 
theory.  I  rode  over  beyond  the  left  of  our 
pickets  where  some  cavalry  were  dismounted 
and  thrown  out  in  the  woods  as  skirmishers, 
telling  the  officer  in  command  of  the  picket  as  I 
went  to  look  out  for  his  left.  Sitting  on  the 
piazza  of  a  house  and  holding  my  horse's  bridle, 
I  listened  to  the  picket  fire  for  some  time  draw 
ing  nearer,  and  then  stopping  as  if  done  on  a 
regular  plan.  Suddenly  it  broke  out  in  front, 
and  I  had  barely  time  to  get  on  my  horse  and 
escape  before  Mahone's  division  burst  through 
the  cavalry,  took  our  pickets  in  reverse,  and 
swept  away  a  large  portion  of  them  as  prisoners. 


WILSON'S   CAVALRY  RAIDS.  217 

Not  long  ago  I  talked  this  over  with  General 
Mahone,  and  he  told  me  it  was  a  plan  he  had 
always  used  to  find  our  flank. 

As  the  2d  corps  had  met  with  a  disaster,  we 
were  withdrawn  and  placed  in  the  hottest  and 
dustiest  camp  in  which  we  had  yet  suffered. 
Some  days  after  there  came  news  of  the  defeat 
of  Wilson's  cavalry  in  a  raid  round  the  enemy, 
and  we  were  ordered  to  Ream's  Station  to  en 
deavor  to  extricate  him.  I  was  sent  ahead  of  the 
column  with  a  few  hundred  cavalry  and  a  guide 
.furnished  by  army  headquarters.  Knowing 
these  scouts,  or  guides,  often  served  both  sides, 
while  I  rode  ahead  with  him,  deeply  interested 
in  his  tales  of  adventure,  I  watched  him  nar 
rowly,  and  when,  as  we  stopped  at  a  farm-house 
to  get  a  drink,  I  detected  a  look  of  intelligence 
between  him  and  the  woman,  I  was  very  much 
on  the  alert. 

At  last  in  some  open  country  we  came  upon  a 
dozen  rebel  cavalry,  and  I  halted  for  our  cavalry 
to  come  up,  but  my  guide  kept  on  challenging 
me  to  charge  them,  and  before  I  realized  what 
he  was  about  he  had  joined  them  and  they  all 
galloped  off.  Then  we  pushed  on  with  the  skir 
mishers  in  front,  and,  after  a  brief  fight  where 
they  had  obstructed  the  road,  came  out  upon  a 
plain,  with  Ream's  Station  and  the  railroad  in 
the  distance.  Thinking  there  was  nothing  but 


218          FOLLOWING   THE   GREEK   CROSS. 

cavalry  holding  the  position,  I  got  mine  into 
line,  dismounted,  and  advanced  over  some 
ploughed  fields  to  receive  a  sharp  fire  from  Fin- 
egan's  Florida  brigade  in  the  railroad  cut,  which 
repulsed  my  attack.  While  I  was  trying  to  get 
them  forward  again,  who  should  appear  on  the 
front  line  but  my  man  Bennett,  very  red  in  the 
face,  with  a  led  horse,  begging  me  to  exchange 
my  stallion  for  him,  as  he  "  feared  Frank  would 
get  hurt.  "  As  Bennett  had  a  prejudice  against 
musketry  fire,  his  devotion  was  so  much  the 
more  touching.  Just  as  I  got  the  cavalry  on  ther 
advance  again,  to  my  delight  I  heard  a  ringing 
cheer  behind,  and,  turning,  saw  the  head  of  the 
corps,  the  Vermont  brigade,  double-quicking 
into  line.  Mr.  Finegan  heard  them,  too,  and  did 
not  wait  for  them  long,  so  we  soon  were  in 
bivouac  at  the  station  as  the  dusk  was  falling. 
Two  of  us  found  a  comfortable  bunk  in  the  pul 
pit  of  a  church  that  night,  though  we  were  turned 
out  several  times  by  attacks  on  our  pickets. 

Wilson's  raiders  had  got  off  some  other  way, 
so  back  went  the  corps  to  the  dusty  camp  again. 
A  few  days  after,  I  was  ordered  to  Yellow  Tav 
ern  on  the  Weldon  Railroad  with  a  battalion  of 
New  Jersey  cavalry\JSid  orders  to  destroy  as  much 
of  the  road  as  possible.  This  regiment  was 
called  the  "  Butterflies "  on  account  of  their 
gaudy  blue  and  yellow  uniforms,  and  the  battal- 


A   CAVALRY  SKIRMISH.  219 

ion  reporting  to  me  were  all  Germans.  After  a 
march  of  some  fifteen  miles,  we  struck  the  rail 
road,  and  the  men  dismounted  and  went  busily 
to  work  bending  the  rails.  The  horses  were  left 
in  charge  of  each  fourth  man  in  a  shady  place 
to  the  rear. 

The  destruction  of  a  railroad  was  in  those  days 
very  simple.  The  iron  rails  were  pried  up  and 
put  on  fires  of  fence  rails,  where  as  soon  as  they 
became  hot  enough  they  bent  over  at  the  ends  by 
their  own  weight.  The  "  Butterflies  "  soon  had 
at  least  a  mile  of  track  torn  up  and  many  fires 
started,  when  I  thought  I  would  climb  up  into 
the  attic  of  the  old  Yellow  Tavern  to  see  if  any 
of  the  enemy  were  visible.  I  had  brought  along 
a  dozen  of  our  headquarters  cavalry,  the  1st 
Vermont,  and  two  of  them  followed  me  up  to  the 
attic.  Looking  out  of  one  of  the  two  windows 
I  saw  a  mounted  officer  in  a  field  beyond,  and  as 
soon  as  the  Vermonters  saw  him  too,  they  began 
cracking  away  with  their  carbines.  The  answer 
was  not  slow  in  coming.  Four  guns  were  fired 
by  battery  from  the  distant  woods.  One  of  the 
shells  came  through  that  attic,  disturbing  the 
dust  of  ages,  so  we. had  hard  work  to  find  our 
way  out.  The  other  three  burst  over  the  led 
horses,  and  when,  half  blinded,  we  got  out  of  the 
house,  not  a  Dutchman  was  in  sight.  A  cloud 
of  distant  dust  betokened  the  time  they  were 


220          FOLLOWING    THE    GREEK  CROSS. 

making.  My  little  squad  of  Vermonters  had 
dashed  forward  to  a  stone  wall,  and  were  en 
gaging  the  now  advancing  enemy  in  a  manner 
delightful  to  witness.  On  came  the  rebels, 
very  cautiously,  and  evidently  thinking  they  had 
to  do  with  a  large  force.  After  delaying  them 
as  long  as  we  could,  at  the  right  moment  we  ran 
for  our  horses  and  dashed  off,  and  when  we  had 
got  about  six  miles  I  met  the  German  major,  who 
had  succeeded  in  rallying  quite  a  portion  of  his 
"  Butterflies,"  and  they  seemed  very  well  satis 
fied  with  their  performance.  Their  excuse  was 
that  the  shells  stampeded  their  horses  and  they 
all  went  after  them.  We  had  many  kinds  of 
material  in  the  Army  of  the  Potomac  and  use 
for  most  of  it,  but  not  for  the  "  Uhlanen." 


CHAPTER  XXXVI. 

"  In  the  beauty  of  the  lilies 

Christ  was  born  across  the  sea, 

With  a  glory  in  his  bosom  that  transfigures  you  and  me  : 
As  he  died  to  make  men  holy,  let  us  die  to  make  men  free, 
While  God  is  marching  on." 

JULIA  WARD  HOWE. 

ORDERS  came  for  us  to  march  to  City  Point 
and  take  shipping.  For  once  the  all-knowing 
staff  were  at  fault.  We  could  not  tell  where  we 
were  going.  Some  had  it  to  take  Wilmington, 
some  that  riots  had  broken  out  in  New  York, 
and  some  that  we  were  to  join  the  Western 
Army ;  but  no  one  knew  that  one  Jubal  Early 
was  on  the  warpath  in  Maryland  with  his  corps 
of  seasoned  veterans,  and  that  the  6th  corps  was 
pulling  up  its  shelter  tents  to  get  on  his  trail. 
Out  of  the  dust,  out  of  the  heat,  away  from 
infinite  winged  insects,  and  then  the  clean  side- 
wheelers  received  us  for  a  day  and  a  night,  roll 
ing  on  the  summer  sea.  Vigor  came  with  the 
breath  of  salt  air,  hope  rose  high  in  youthful 
hearts,  almost  numbed  into  insensibility  by  the 
long  carnage  which  had  swept  away  more  than  a 
third  of  the  Army  of  the  Potomac  since  Grant's 
banner  crossed  the  Eappahannock  at  Germania 


222          FOLLOWING   THE    GREEK  CROSS. 

Ford.  The  morning  saw  us  passing  Mount  Ver- 
iion ;  the  loom  of  the  great  city  and  fortress  was 
in  the  distance,  and,  still  unconscious  of  what 
fate  had  in  store  for  us,  we  landed  our  first  bri 
gade  on  the  ruined  wharves  of  Washington. 

Cannon  were  booming  out  toward  Tenally- 
town ;  artillery  practice,  said  we,  but  the  closed 
stores  and  the  concourse  of  carts  and  people 
moving  off  merchandise  soon  apprised  us  that 
the  foe  was  near.  Starting  the  first  brigade  at 
speed  toward  the  firing,  General  Wright  and 
staff  galloped  in  hot  haste  toward  Halleck's  head 
quarters  for  orders  and  information.  The  heat 
was  appalling,  the  orders  vague  enough,  and  the 
information  of  all  kinds.  But  under  the  ban 
ners  of  the  Greek  Cross  was  disembarking  a  rag 
ged  and  bronzed  lot  of  soldiers  in  very  business 
like  haste,  and  soon  a  sturdy  column  of  twelve 
thousand  veterans  was  going  up  the  avenue  and 
out  Seventh  Street,  through  applauding  crowds. 
The  citizens  were  not  "  with  terror  dumb  "  after 
we  got  there.  By  noon  we  reached  the  line  of 
works  at  Fort  Stevens  and  found  a  rattled  lot  of 
defenders,  brave  enough,  but  with  no  coherence 
or  organization.  Within  the  forts  there  were 
plenty  of  brigadier-generals  with  new  shoulder 
straps  wandering  proudly  about,  the  treasury 
guards  pale  with  anticipated  battle,  the  quarter 
masters  and  commissary  men,  reserve  batteries, 


THE  PRESIDENT    UNDER   FIRE.  223 

all  war's  motley  ;  and  without,  as  fine  a  corps  of 
infantry  as  ever  marched  to  tap  of  drum  were 
closing  in  upon  the  Capitol,  with  the  stars  and 
bars  waving. 

I  was  sitting  on  the  rampart  of  Fort  Stevens 
watching  our  people  get  into  position,  and  look 
ing  at  the  flight  of  shells  from  a  few  great  guns 
firing,  when  I  saw  the  President  standing  on  the 
wall  a  little  way  off.  Bullets  were  whizzing  over 
in  a  desultory  manner,  and  the  puffs  of  smoke 
in  the  woods  opposite  were  growing  in  number,, 
An  officer  standing  on  the  wall  between  me  and 
Mr.  Lincoln  suddenly  keeled  over  and  was  helped 
away.  Then  a  lot  of  people  persuaded  Mr. 
Lincoln  to  get  down  out  of  range,  which  he  very 
reluctantly  did.  My  attention  was  directed  to  a 
movement  of  a  little  brigade  out  of  the  lines. 
They  moved  forward  so  promptly  and  came  into 
line  so  cleanly  that  I  wondered  whose  brigade 
it  was,  but  their  colors  were  not  visible  from 
where  I  sat.  Had  I  known  that  it  was  my  own 
brigade,  that  the  7th  Maine  were  in  the  first 
line,  I  think  I  might  have  gone  too,  in  spite  of 
staff  duties.  But  a  few  more  than  a  thousand 
of  them,  and  they  are  charging  Early's  corps ! 
The  defenders  of  the  lines  look  on  in  wonder, 
the  President  and  his  party  feel  that  a  real 
battle  is  before  them  at  last,  and  we  all  hold  our 
breath  as  the  two  little  lines  strike  the  enemy. 


224          FOLLOWING   THE   GREEK   CROSS. 

Now  they  are  wreathed  in  smoke  of  their  own 
making,  and  the  smoke  clouds  of  the  enemy 
float  backward. 

On  they  go  through  his  line,  while  the  fire 
crashes  seem  out  of  proportion  to  the  fight. 
Back  go  the  enemy,  more  we  think  from  the 
sight  of  the  6th  corps  flags  than  from  the  num 
ber  assailing  them,  and  now  the  brigade  are 
holding,  in  good  position,  a  vantage  ground  in 
the  rebel  lines.  Soon  night  is  falling,  column 
after  column  of  the  corps  is  pushing  out  beyond 
the  fort,  and  the  crackling  skirmish  fire  only 
ceases  with  the  darkness.  The  3d  brigade  of 
Getty's  division  has  smashed  Early's  line,  and 
has  lost  every  regimental  commander.  Back 
goes  General  Early  that  night,  and  Washington 
is  safe  again.  Many  of  those  who  fell  now  lie 
in  a  little  graveyard  on  the  Seventh  Street  road. 
Few  of  the  people  of  Washington  since  have 
recked  for  what  they  gave  their  lives.  No 
knights  in  ancient  tournament  ever  fought  in 
prouder  lists,  or  before  a  more  honorable  com 
pany,  but  the  busy  people  of  to-day  have  for 
gotten  them. 

"  Can  storied  urn  or  animated  bust 

Back  to  its  mansion  call  the  fleeting  breath, 
Can  Honor's  voice  provoke  the  silent  dust, 

Or  flattery  soothe  the  dull,  cold  ear  of  death  ?  " 


CHAPTER  XXXVII. 

"  Comrades  known  in  marches  many, 
Comrades  tried  in  dangers  many, 
Comrades  bound  by  memories  many, 
Brothers  ever  let  us  be. 

"  Wounds  or  sickness  may  divide  us, 
Marching  orders  may  divide  us, 
But  whatever  fates  betide  us, 
Brothers  of  the  heart  are  we." 

HALPINE. 

AFTER  the  dreadful  slaughter  of  Spottsylvania, 
when  my  regiment  was  left  with  sixty-five  bayo 
nets  in  line  and  in  command  of  a  captain,  I 
thought  it  might  be  my  duty  to  go  back  to  it,  so 
I  asked  the  advice  of  General  Patrick,  the  old 
est  regular  officer  in  the  field.  His  counsel  was 
to  remain  upon  the  staff,  on  the  ground  that  the 
regiment  was  then  but  a  captain's  command  and 
that  the  highest  use  was  in  my  present  duties. 
After  the  fight  at  Washington,  however,  Major 
Jones  of  the  7th  being  killed  and  their  num 
bers  being  some  two  hundred,  I  asked  General 
Wright  to  be  relieved  from  staff  duty  and  re 
turned  to  the  regiment  as  we  filed  out  of  bivouac 
in  a  hot  pursuit  of  Early  towards  Edward's 
Ferry.  It  seemed  strange  to  be  confined  to  the 


226          FOLLOWING   THE   GREEK   CROSS. 

marching  column  again,  and  to  see  my  late  com 
panions  riding  free  in  the  distance,  but  regi 
mental  duty  has  its  compensations ;  the  hearty 
welcome  of  my  hardy  and  gallant  command,  a 
large  portion  of  whom  had  reenlisted  for  three 
years,  was  very  cheering.  My  man  Bennett 
welcomed  any  change,  assuming  the  duties  of 
caterer  to  our  mess,  and  it  is  unnecessary  to  say 
we  lived  largely  upon  the  country.  He  had  a 
very  small  mule  with  two  panniers  containing 
cooking  and  table  utensils,  and  when  the  time 
for  the  noon  halt  came,  the  mule  was  generally 
on  hand,  and  duck,  or  chickens,  or  turkey,  ready 
cooked,  with  apple-butter,  honey,  and  other  gar- 
nishings  in  plenty.  Such  luxuries  were  rarely 
available  except  in  Maryland  or  the  Shenandoah 
Valley.  In  Virginia,  hard-tack  fried  in  pork, 
with  black  coffee,  was  the  bill  of  fare  three  times 
a  day,  if  we  were  lucky  enough  to  get  it  so  often, 
and  at  times,  when  the  herd  got  up,  a  very 
fresh  steak  was  added.  The  colored  people 
sometimes  contributed  a  hoecake,  and  mutton 
occasionally  varied  our  diet,  as  a  little  offering 
from  the  men.  In  no  other  mode  of  life  could 
a  pipe  taste  so  good,  especially  around  fires  the 
nights  in  the  mountains  made  necessary,  while 
the  distant  bugles  sounded  the  retreat,  and 
where  a  soft  bit  of  turf  was  soon  to  woo  us  to 
repose  under  the  bright  stars. 


THE  SNOW  BIVOUAC.  227 

I  forget  in  what  campaign  it  was,  but  once  I 
woke  just  before  reveille  and  found  myself  cov 
ered  with  two  inches  of  snow.  The  bivouac  of  a 
division  of  infantry  was  in  sight,  with  the  long 
stacks  of  muskets  and  what  looked  like -little 
snow  mounds  as  far  as  one  could  see.  Then  the 
fife  and  drum  and  answering  bugles  sounded 
reveille,  and  the  wide,  white  plain  turned  black 
with  men.  The  mounds  burst  asunder, 

"  And  the  muttered  sounds, 

Changed  into  loud  strange  shouts  and  warlike  clang, 
As  with  freed  feet  at  last  the  earthborn  sprang 
On  to  the  tumbling  earth,  and  the  sunlight 
Shone  on  bright  arms  clean  ready  for  the  fight." 

We  marched  up  the  Potomac,  forded  the 
river  near  Ball's  Bluff,  pushed  on  to  Snicker's 
Gap  in  the  Alleghanies,  then  over  into  the 
promised  land  of  the  Shenandoah  the  6th  corps 
banners  floated,  into  that  land  of  plenty,  but  of 
humiliation,  too,  until  Sheridan's  army  changed 
the  record.  Then  back  again  to  Washington  in 
many  a  weary  march,  we  in  the  line  not  know 
ing  the  reason  why.  When  in  Maryland  again 
I  heard  the  colonel  was  coming,  was  almost 
there  ;  so  when  he  hove  in  sight,  I  bade  adieu  to 
my  little  command  and  was  soon  reinstated  at 
corps  headquarters  in  the  old  duties.  Then  we 
pulled  out  again  to  Harper's  Ferry,  under  Hun 
ter,  to  repel  a  cavalry  raid,  but  we  could  not 


228  FOLLOWING   THE   GREEK   CROSS. 

catch  up  with  the  cavalry.  Through  Harper's 
Ferry,  of  giant  mountains  and  sorry  memories 
and  stifling,  dusty  heat,  and  soon  back  again  into 
the  Maryland  valleys,  the  column  went ;  but  at 
last  came  Sheridan,  and  with  him  the  hope  that 
some  business  was  to  be  done.  Nobody  was  hun 
gry  to  fight,  but  we  knew  we  were  there  for  other 
purposes  than  to  be  a  traveling  procession,  and 
the  cause  had  been  for  a  long  time  a  failing  one. 
Even  the  thinking  soldiers  about  their  campfires 
felt  a  discouragement  the  gloom  of  the  Wilder 
ness  had  failed  to  produce.  Money  was  worth 
about  thirty  cents  on  the  dollar,  but  there  was 
small  use  for  it  with  us.  We  did  not  see  the 
right  kind  of  recruits  coming  to  fill  the  little 
regiments.  Down  the  valley  we  went,  now  an 
independent  army,  three  corps  and  the  cavalry ; 
Sheridan  ubiquitous  and  gathering  in  our  good 
opinions  fast.  Colonel  Tolles  and  Dr.  Oehlen- 
schlager  of  our  staff  were  captured  one  day  and 
promptly  murdered  after  surrender.  This  made 
war  look  more  serious  than  ever.  Were  we  go 
ing  back  into  barbarism  ? 

As  we  started  southward  one  lovely  morn 
ing,  expecting  to  reach  Middletown,  Arthur 
McClellan  and  I  rode  ahead  to  try  our  good 
horses  and  escape  the  dust  of  the  crowd  where 
we  were  not  especially  needed.  We  supposed 
our  cavalry  were  in  the  advance.  When  we 


NARROW  ESCAPES.  229 

reached  Middletown,  the  girls,  instead  of  mak 
ing  faces  at  us  from  the  windows,  seemed  vastly 
pleased  about  something,  but  this  did  not  warn 
us.  We  rode  on  through  the  long  straggling 
town,  barked  at  by  dogs,  and  laughed  at  by 
maids,  till,  near  an  old  mill,  by  its  farther  bounds, 
we  paused  to  look  at  the  picturesque  mountains, 
valleys,  and  streams,  for  which  this  part  of  the 
valley  is  renowned.  Beyond  was  Fisher's  Hill 
so  soon  to  be  famed  in  battle  story ;  at  its  base 
far  away  a  rebel  regiment  was  drilling.  The 
mountain  air  was  keen,  so  we  had  light  blue 
private's  overcoats  covering  our  uniforms.  Sud 
denly  rang  out  behind  us  the  sharp  challenge, 
"  What  regiment  do  you  belong  to  ?  "  Turning, 
I  saw  six  cavalrymen  in  dirty  gray  upon  the  road 
behind,  carbines  in  hand.  Their  leader's  jacket 
was  slashed  with  gold,  and  a  broad  slouched  hat 
shaded  his  face.  As  we  turned,  the  buttons  of 
our  uniforms  showed  from  our  open  overcoats, 
and  the  six  carbines  rang  out  in  unison. 
Thoughts  run  rapidly  in  deadly  emergency,  and 
mine  were,  "  What  a  wretched  weapon,"  as  the 
balls  tore  the  old  boards  of  the  mill  beside  us. 
We  cannot  go  forward,  we  cannot  go  back,  so 
blessed  be  the  lessons  of  our  riding  school  on  the 
banks  of  the  Rappahannock,  and  blessed  be  our 
pride  in  having  good  horseflesh !  A  half  side 
ways  jump  over  the  fence  to  our  right  tests  the 


230  FOLLOWING   THE   GREEK   CROSS. 

mettle  of  our  noble  horses.  In  an  instant  we  see 
the  rebels  cannot  jump  it.  And  then  a  race,  we 
one  side  of  the  fence  and  they  the  other.  They 
cannot  load  their  carbines,  and  we  pull  our 
pistols  from  our  boots  and  empty  them  gayly. 
Walls  and  fences  are  nothing  to  us.  Soon  we 
find  their  horses  are  not  "  in  it,"  and  in  mad 
career  free  the  town  and  leave  our  breathless 
pursuers.  Thoughts  of  Tolles  and  of  Oehlen- 
schlager  will  not  down  at  the  bidding.  Our  win 
ners  in  quarter  mile  races  stood  us  in  good  stead 
that  day.  As  it  happened,  our  cavalry  was  not 
in  front ;  these  people  were  the  rebel  cavalry 
picket  who  chanced  to  be  off  for  a  while  from 
the  entrance  of  the  town  where  they  belonged, 
and  hence  the  glee  of  the  girls  who  saw  us  in 
the  trap. 

Then  came  a  march  up  the  valley  to  Harper's 
Ferry  again,  caused  by  the  enemy  getting  in  our 
rear.  Night  and  day  we  went.  One  night 
about  two  o'clock,  utterly  weary,  I  thought  I 
would  go  to  the  house  of  a  doctor  I  knew,  a 
Union  man,  in  a  little  town,  and  catch  two  or 
three  hours'  sleep,  and  go  along  before  the  corps 
got  by.  I  lay  down  on  his  parlor  floor  with  a 
pile  of  music  books  for  a  pillow,  and  only  was 
waked  by  the  sun  streaming  in  my  face.  Look 
ing  out  of  the  window  I  saw  seemingly  intermi 
nable  gray  cavalry  going  by.  My  horse  was  in 


MUSTERED    OUT.  231 

the  barn  adjacent,  and  I  feared  his  whinny  or 
other  cause  might  attract  some  of  them  to  the 
house.  It  was  Mosby  and  his  band  following 
our  track  for  stragglers.  I  was  in  what  an 
Englishman  would  call  a  "  blue  funk,"  but  could 
not  help  watching  them,  pistol  in  hand,  till  the 
last  file  went  by.  I  did  not  dare  till  then  to  go 
after  my  horse,  but  when  I  did  go,  I  struck  a 
bee  line  for  the  mountains  behind  the  town,  and 
by  twenty  miles  of  devious  paths  in  a  hostile 
country,  chanced  to  get  to  the  corps  again. 
These  little  adventures  were  heightened  in  ex 
citement  by  a  belief  that  capture  would  be  fol 
lowed  by  instant  execution,  and  I  think  in  the 
exasperated  feeling  of  the  day,  it  might  have 
been  so.  As  my  time  was  out  in  two  or  three 
days,  taking  these  chances  was  doubly  unpleas 
ant. 

When  we  got  back  to  the  head  of  the  valley, 
Early  attacked  us  just  as  the  7th  Maine  were 
starting  for  home.  I  had  bidden  my  friends  a 
fond  farewell,  resumed  command  of  the  regi 
ment,  and  started  for  the  cars.  We  stopped  for 
our  share  of  the  fight,  which  was  a  sharp  one, 
till  the  Vermonters  made  one  of  their  accus 
tomed  charges,  ending  the  matter.  Then  off  we 
marched,  sadly  leaving  our  reenlisted  comrades, 
joyfully  welcoming  visions  of  home  and  of  again 
seeing  mother  and  sister,  sweetheart  or  wife. 


232          FOLLOWING   THE   GREEK   CROSS. 

Soon  mustered  out,  the  career  of  the  Seventh 
Maine  Volunteers  closed.  Enlisted  just  after 
Bull  Run,  composed  of  people  exasperated  at 
our  defeat,  and  going  down  to  Virginia  meaning 
business,  it  is  little  wonder  they  made  a  good 
record.  Not  once  did  they  do  anything  the 
proudest  infantry  of  this  or  any  other  time 
would  be  ashamed  of.  A  lot  of  zealous,  patri 
otic  Maine  boys,  averaging  somewhere  about 
twenty-two  years,  they  proved  themselves  worthy 
descendants  of  the  farmer  soldiers  who  held  this 
border,  the  debatable  ground,  against  savage 
and  Frenchman,  and  who  placed  the  English 
banners  over  Louisburg.  Another  generation 
of  their  ancestors  assisted  in  nearly  every  battle 
of  the  Revolution,  when  from  Kittery  Point  to 
Machias  no  draft  or  forced  enlistment,  but 
patriotism  alone  "robbed  the  cradle  and  the 
grave." 


CHAPTER  XXXVIII. 

"  Here  Shenandoah  brawls  along", 
There  burly  Blue  Ridge  echoes  strong 
To  swell  the  Brigade's  rousing  song." 

ANON. 

IT  was  a  long  and  hard  journey  from  the 
Shenandoah  Valley  to  Maine  in  the  war  time. 
We  did  not  mind  the  slow  trains  and  uncomfort 
able  cars,  however,  for  we  knew  no  better,  and 
the  anticipation  of  seeing  family,  friends,  and 
home  produced  a  happiness  that  no  outward 
surroundings  could  lessen.  The  men  who  re- 
enlisted  for  the  war  and  those  left  behind  had 
been  put  into  five  companies,  and  two  similar 
companies  of  the  5th  and  three  of  the  6th  Maine 
joined  with  them,  and  it  was  rumored  that  the 
intention  was  to  call  the  organization  so  formed 
the  First  Regiment  of  Maine  Veteran  Volun 
teers.  What  finer  command  could  a  young 
soldier  ask  for?  They  were  picked  men,  and 
nearly  all  of  them  had  been  wounded  in  battle. 
On  reaching  Augusta,  I  at  once  went  to  the  gov 
ernor  and  made  application  for  the  colonelcy. 
He  promptly  said  he  had  already  determined  to 
give  it  to  me.  With  my  new  commission  in  my 


234          FOLLOWING   THE   GREEK   CROSS. 

pocket,  I  bade  a  last  good-by  to  the  men  who 
were  being  mustered  out,  and  then  passed  a  few 
days  at  the  home  I  had  several  times  supposed 
I  had  visited  for  the  last  time.  Newspaper 
rumors  of  fighting  in  the  valley  caused  another 
start  to  the  front.  On  reaching  Washington,  I 
heard  General  Sheridan  was  at  Willard's.  Go 
ing  to  Willard's,  I  found  he  had  just  left  for  the 
train ;  following  him  to  the  station,  I  found  that 
the  train  had  just  gone,  and  there  was  not 
another  till  the  morrow. 

Ignorant  that  I  was  missing  by  a  scratch 
"  Sheridan's  ride,"  I  took  in  review  the  brass- 
buttoned  patriots  at  the  hotels,  bought  a  pair  of 
colonel's  shoulder  straps,  and  carelessly  passed 
the  time  till  the  next  day's  train  crawled  slowly 
into  Martinsburg.  The  following  morning  I 
procured  a  wretched  animal  of  the  quartermas 
ter  and  a  small  escort  of  cavalry,  for  the  twenty 
miles  to  Winchester  were  said  to  be  swarming 
with  guerrillas,  and  started  out  with  many  mis 
givings.  The  country  looked  about  as  Germany 
may  have  looked  after  the  Thirty  Years'  War, 
but  the  scenery  was  all  there.  After  a  while  I 
found  out  that  my  cavalry  were  getting  drunker 
and  drunker,  and  were  useless  but  to  attract 
notice,  so  dismissing  them,  I  kept  on  down  the 
pike  on  a  steed  that  could  not  have  run  away  if 
he  had  tried  to.  All  was  stillness  for  fifteen 


MAJOK    O.  A.  WHITTIER,  A.  D.  C. 


A   BRIGADE  BY  INVERSION.  235 

miles ;  it  was  the  abomination  of  desolation,  not 
even  the  "low  of  cattle  and  song  of  birds." 
Man  was  all  there  was  to  fear,  however.  At 
last,  I  saw  calvary  moving  on  the  road  far  away, 
and  when  nearer  saw  a  lady  on  horseback  with 
an  ambulance  at  their  head,  and  soon  had  a 
kind  greeting  from  Mrs.  General  Ricketts  and 
from  her  wounded  husband.  They  told  me  of 
the  defeat  and  subsequent  victory  at  Cedar 
Creek,  how  Sheridan  had  found  the  6th  corps 
undefeated  and  in  line  ready  to  advance,  how 
General  Bidwell  had  been  killed  at  the  head 
of  my  brigade,  and  many  more  things,  and  it 
dawned  upon  me  that  I  had  accidentally  missed 
the  opportunity  of  a  lifetime  for  promotion. 
Pushing  on  to  Winchester,  I  was  received  with 
the  greatest  hospitality  by  Colonel  Edwards 
commanding  there,  and  then  spent  the  balance 
of  the  day  in  the  hospitals,  where  it  seemed  as 
if  I  was  finding  everybody  I  knew. 

Joining  the  brigade  the  day  following,  I 
found  myself  the  ranking  officer  and  in  charge 
of  it,  so  I  never  commanded  the  1st  Maine 
veterans.  I  found  that  regiment  in  an  exceed 
ingly  unhappy  condition.  The  old  regiments 
that  composed  it  would  not  mix  at  all  and  were 
jealous  of  each  other  in  the  extreme.  By  filling 
the  vacancies  in  the  7th  Maine  companies  by 
5th  and  6th  Maine  men  and  vice  versa,  it  soon 


236          FOLLOWING   THE   GREEK  CROSS. 

became  one  of  the  most  homogeneous  organiza 
tions,  as  well  as  one  of  the  best,  I  ever  knew. 
It  was  a .  proud  thing  for  a  boy  to  command  a 
brigade,  and  a  good  brigade  too.  There  were 
six  regiments,  and  it  happened  the  very  first 
afternoon  that  I  had  to  take  them  out  on  bri 
gade  drill.  I  knew  the  tactics  well  enough  and 
got  along  finely  at  first,  but  at  length  I  got 
them  by  inversion  and  could  not  think  how 
to  get  them  out.  Major  Long,  their  adjutant- 
general  all  through  the  war,  could  or  would  not 
tell  me,  so  in  a  cold  perspiration  I  marched 
them  up  and  down  for  a  fifteen  minutes  that 
seemed  an  hour,  till  the  right  order  came  to 
mind. 

The  November  days  were  beautiful,  and  the 
nights  cold  in  the  valley,  but  our  rude  fireplaces 
spread  a  cheerful  glow  by  night  as  the  autumnal 
forests  did  by  day.  After  Sheridan  reviewed  us 
it  came  my  turn  to  command  the  army  picket 
line.  The  enemy  were  threatening  that  day. 
Our  cavalry  seemed  to  be  coming  back.  Sheri 
dan  with  a  few  officers  passed  through  my  line 
out  toward  the  firing,  telling  me  to  be  in  readi 
ness  for  an  attack,  —  and  soon  our  people  seemed 
to  be  holding  their  own.  That  night  I  made 
my  headquarters  at  a  house  where  there  was  a 
large  picket  reserve,  and  lying  on  the  parlor  floor 
with  my  sword  for  a  pillow,  trying  to  read  by 


A   LAND    OF  MILK   AND   HONEY.  237 

the  light  of  a  tallow  candle,  I  had  just  finished 
the  lines,  — 

"  Thou  little  knowest 
What  he  can  bear,  who  born  and  nurst 
In  Danger's  paths  has  dared  her  worst, 
Upon  whose  ear  the  signal  word 
Of  strife  and  death  is  hourly  breaking,        ) 
Who  sleeps  with  head  upon  the  sword 
His  fevered  hand  must  grasp  in  waking," 

when  volleys  of  musketry  burst  out  from  far 
and  near.  Startled  by  them  and  by  the  coinci 
dence  as  well,  I  was  soon  in  the  saddle  to  see  a 
night  attack  repulsed. 

We  had  dogs  and  double-barreled  shotguns, 
and  as  the  country  was  full  of  rabbit,  quail, 
woodcock,  and  other  game,  our  larders  were  well 
supplied.  Indeed,  this  portion  of  the  valley  was 
a  land  flowing  with  milk  and  honey,  and  a  proud 
land  too  it  remains  in  the  memory  of  the  6th 
corps.  An  uninterrupted  series  of  victories  had 
perched  on  the  banners  of  the  Greek  Cross,  and 
Sheridan,  our  greatest  general,  had  said  very 
kind  things  of  its  devoted  followers. 


CHAPTER  XXXIX. 

For  men  must  work  and  women  must  weep, 
The  sooner  it's  over  the  sooner  to  sleep." 

KlNGSLEY. 

ABOUT  the  10th  of  December,  1864,  Early's 
army  having  become  practically  extinct,  we  were 
ordered  to  the  Army  of  the  Potomac  again  near 
Petersburg.  We  took  a  train  of  box  cars  on 
the  Baltimore  &  Ohio  Railroad,  and  as  it  was 
cold  weather  and  snowing  hard,  fires  were  built 
in  the  centre  of  each  car  on  a  platform  of  stones. 
At  about  ten  miles  an  hour  the  brigade  pro 
ceeded  to  Washington,  where  it  was  embarked 
on  three  steamers  en  route  for  the  James  River. 

I  took  a  smaller  steamer  for  headquarters, 
and  after  going  to  see  General  Connor  who  was 
still  in  the  hospital  suffering  from  his  wound  re 
ceived  in  The  Wilderness,  we  steamed  down  the 
Potomac  toward  the  dark  and  bloody  ground 
about  Petersburg.  This  time,  however,  there 
was  hope  in  the  air ;  all  were  beginning  to  feel 
that  the  next  campaign  would  be  the  last,  and 
most  of  the  army  now  recognized  the  fact  that 
emancipation  had  been  the  end  for  which  the 
war  had  been  permitted  in  the  scheme  of  Provi 
dence.  We  landed  at  City  Point,  and  while  the 


OUR  DUTCH   GAP   CANAL.  239 

brigade  were  preparing  for  a  seventeen-mile 
march  to  our  position  in  the  line  of  the  army,  I 
called  on  General  Patrick  at  Grant's  headquar 
ters.  He  asked  me  if  I  would  accept  the  position 
of  Provost-Marshal  General  of  the  Army  of  the 
Potomac,  now  vacant  by  reason  of  his  going  on 
Grant's  staff,  and  said  he  had  been  asked  to  re 
commend  an  officer  for  that  position.  I  pointed 
to  my  splendid  brigade  just  moving  up  the 
road,  and  declined  with  his  full  approval,  but 
it  was  pleasant  to  be  so  remembered  by  the  old 
man,  for  whom  I  had  always  felt  a  lively  affec 
tion. 

The  next  day  we  went  into  camp  on  the  Squir 
rel  Level  road,  behind  Fort  Fisher,  which  made 
an  angle  in  the  line.  The  prospect  was  dis 
couraging  enough,  the  ground  was  swampy,  the 
roads  snow  and  mud.  As  we  were  likely  to  stay 
here  three  months,  I  set  all  hands  at  work  drain 
ing  the  camp  ground  by  a  wide  and  deep  trench, 
which  the  men  called  Dutch  Gap  Canal. 

Then  quarters  were  built  on  an  approved  plan, 
and  it  was  not  long  before  our  camp  was  equal 
to  any.  At  this  stage  of  the  war  we  had  not 
only  got  to  be  quite  proficient  in  utilizing  all 
methods  of  cover  from  shot  and  shell,  but  had 
learned  the  value  of  hygiene,  and  paid  as  much 
attention  to  the  health  of  the  men  as  to  their 
drill  and  discipline.  If  we  had  known  how  to 


240         FOLLOWING   THE   GREEK   CROSS. 

look  after  their  health  earlier,  it  might  have 
shortened  the  war. 

This  winter  had  very  few  excitements  and  a 
great  deal  of  very  hard  work.  We  had  a  bri 
gade  dress  parade  every  afternoon  at  four  o'clock 
and  went  through  the  whole  of  the  bayonet  ex 
ercise  to  the  sound  of  the  bugle.  Sometimes 
the  enemy  attacked  our  pickets,  inflicting  loss, 
but  our  orders  were  very  strict  about  reprisals. 
Deserters  came  in  from  the  enemy  in  scores,  and 
their  starved  and  wan  appearance  indicated  bet 
ter  than  anything  else  that  the  Confederacy  was 
on  its  last  legs.  From  our  picket  lines,  however, 
we  could  see  that  the  Army  of  Northern  Virginia 
was  still  a  most  formidable  foe.  Their  forts, 
with  five  lines  of  abattis  in  front,  looked  as  if 
they  could  defy  any  attack. 

Generals  Mackenzie,  Warner,  and  I  were 
made  a  board  of  examination  of  officers  for  pro 
motion,  and  this  board,  though  a  star  chamber 
and  arbitrary  in  the  extreme,  was  of  great  value 
in  that  it  could  prevent  poor  officers  being  put 
upon  us  by  the  governors  of  the  States  for  polit 
ical  or  other  cause.  One  of  my  regiments  was 
commanded  by  a  lieutenant  -  colonel  who  had 
greatly  distinguished  himself  and  who  had  just 
returned  with  an  empty  sleeve.  This  winter  the 
regiment  got  large  enough  by  accession  of  drafted 
men  to  allow  a  colonel  to  be  mustered.  The  gov- 


a         § 
1         1 


§1 


PICKET  ATTACK.  241 

ernor,  paying  no  attention  to  the  wishes  of  the 
regiment,  or  the  recommendations  of  the  generals 
of  the  army,  that  the  lieutenant-colonel  should  be 
promoted,  canceled  some  political  debt  by  send 
ing  down  a  brand-new  colonel.  He  arrived  in 
the  morning  in  spick  and  span  uniform  and  very 
shiny  equipment.  At  ten  o'clock  he  went  before 
this  board,  and  the  noon  train  carried  him  back 
toward  his  State  again,  a  sadder  and  a  wiser 
man. 

By  a  piece  of  luck  one  day  I  discovered  in 
one  of  the  regiments  a  Frenchman  who  had 
been  a  cook  in  the  Cafe  Riche  at  Paris.  We 
were  not  living  very  well,  as  the  market  was  bad 
as  well  as  our  cookery,  but  when  Fra^ois  took 
possession  of  the  cook  tent,  it  was  another  thing. 
I  saw  a  genial  and  patriotic  visitor  of  ours  from 
Maine  go  out  from  one  of  his  dinners  entirely 
determined  to  give  every  man  of  the  Army  of  the 
Potomac  a  dollar,  and  he  kept  on  for  quite  a 
time  too,  till  he  realized  how  many  of  them  there 
were. 

We  used  to  sleep  with  our  clothes  on  against 
sudden  attack.  One  night  a  dozen  bullets  ripped 
through  the  canvas  roof  of  my  house,  and  I  suc 
ceeded  in  galloping  out  without  any  boots  on,  to 
find  that  they  had  made  a  swoop  on  our  brigade 
picket,  capturing  about  half  of  them.  I  sent 
Captain  John  Goldthwait,  of  the  1st  Maine,  to 


242  FOLLOWING   THE   GREEK  CROSS. 

make  a  reconnaissance,  and  on  his  return  lie 
offered  to  take  his  company,  with  stockings  over 
their  boots,  and,  by  crawling  through  an  old 
rifle  pit  into  their  lines  and  getting  behind  their 
picket  reserve,  capture  many  more  in  return. 
He  was  a  handsome  fellow  of  rather  melancholy 
mien,  and  he  begged  earnestly  for  the  chance, 
telling  me  that  he  knew  he  should  be  killed  in 
the  opening  battle  of  the  campaign,  and  that  he 
wanted  to  do  something  before  he  went.  I 
started  out  promptly  for  permission  in  the  morn 
ing,  and  it  was  approved  till  I  got  to  General 
Meade,  who  as  promptly  refused.  It  was  the 
only  time  I  ever  saw  a  presentiment  realized. 
In  our  next  battle,  when  I  was  obliged  to  sacrifice 
the  1st  Maine  veterans  to  save  the  brigade  from 
being  flanked,  poor  Goldthwait  was  almost  the 
first  man  to  fall,  dying  instantly. 


CHAPTER  XL. 

"  One  crowded  hour  of  glorious  life 
Is  worth  an  age  without  a  name."  v 

SCOTT. 

EAKLY  in  the  morning  of  March  25th,  we  were 
awakened  by  tremendous  firing  far  off  to  the 
right.  Every  one  was  kept  ready  to  fall  in  on 
the  instant,  and  after  a  while  information  came 
that  Gordon  had  attacked  and  taken  our  forts  at 
Hare's  Hill.  The  rattling  volleys  and  the  can 
nonading  kept  on,  however,  till  later  information 
told  us  that  General  Hartranft  had  succeeded  in 
driving  him  out.  Then  orders  came  to  fall  in, 
and  I  felt  that  the  time  had  at  last  come,  so  of 
ten  longed  for,  when  it  should  be  settled  whether 
I  could  command  six  regiments  in  action  to  my 
own  satisfaction.  It  was  an  unknown  problem, 
a  somewhat  dreaded  problem  too.  It  was  not  a 
question  of  danger  at  all,  for  in  great  responsi 
bility,  personal  danger  is  little  thought  of  by  any 
one.  What  is  to  be  dreaded  is,  not  doing  the 
right  thing  at  the  right  time. 

About  noon  orders  came  from  division  head 
quarters  to  "form  the  brigade  in  close  column 
of  regiments  behind  the  Vermonters,  on  the 
right  of  Fort  Fisher."  Hardly  was  the  brigade 


244          FOLLOWING   TEE   GREEK   CROSS. 

in  position  when  the  Vermonters  started  forward 
toward  the  enemy's  picket  pits  and  forts,  bend 
ing  low  to  conceal  themselves  as  much  as  pos 
sible,  so  the  rebel  cannon  would  not  open  any 
sooner  than  necessary. 

I  looked  back  over  the  brigade,  and  the  picture 
still  survives.  More  than  two  thousand  bronzed, 
hardy,  and  well-known  faces,  and  every  eye  was 
upon  me.  But  it  cannot  be  intended  for  us  to 
follow  the  Yermonters  merely  to  capture  a  few 
miserable  pickets.  It  is  to  take  the  forts,  I  rea 
son,  and  wishing  to  get  there  as  soon  as  anybody,  I 
change  the  alignment  of  my  first  regiment  so  we 
can  clear  the  Vermonters  to  their  right,  and  off 
we  go.  We  are  soon  up  with  them.  Some 
thirty  cannon  open  from  the  rebel  forts  to  our 
right,  to  our  left,  and  in  front,  but  till  we  had 
captured  and  were  by  the  enemy's  pickets  I 
don't  think  they  hurt  us  much,  as  we  were  any 
thing  but  a  stationary  mark.  Now  half  the  dis 
tance  to  the  forts  is  covered,  and  I  look  back  to 
see  Vermont  is  halted  at  the  picket  pits  digging. 

Forward  my  regiments  were  going  in  mad 
career ;  in  their  front  the  ground  was  flooded, 
and  the  only  access  to  the  forts  was  a  narrow 
milldam  not  wide  enough  for  two  men  abreast. 
Something  had  got  to  be  done  quickly.  It  was 
perfectly  evident  we  were  not  enough  to  get  over 
there  and  hold  anything,  and  also  evident  that 


ACTION   OF  FORT  FISHER.  245 

we  were  not  expected  to,  so  the  recall  was 
sounded  and  the  brigade  got  back  and  aligned 
with  the  Vermonters  before  much  damage  was 
done.  The  rebel  cannon  were  worked  for  all 
they  were  worth,  but  so  far  the  balls  were  strik 
ing  places  we  had  just  left.  My  right  was  in  the 
air,  and  from  woods  masking  the  rebel  line  to 
our  right  a  strong  force  bore  down  on  that  flank. 
I  at  once  refused  the  1st  Maine  veterans  and  or 
dered  the  122d  New  York  in  with  them.  Their 
colonel,  Dwight,  had  not  time  to  obey  the  order, 
as  a  shell  took  his  head  off,  and  I  had  to  help 
get  them  in  place.  Our  fire  was  so  effective  that 
the  attacking  force  sought  shelter  in  a  large  ra 
vine  from  which  no  man  attempted  to  emerge 
for  hours  without  being  a  target  for  many  balls. 
But  the  position  of  the  1st  Maine  was  frightful. 
There  was  an  angle  in  the  enemy's  line  off  to 
our  left,  so  they  were  taken  in  rear  by  cannon, 
enfiladed  to  their  left  by  cannon,  beside  a  front 
fire.  To  change  the  range,  I  moved  them  as 
often  as  possible  to  a  new  place  in  the  same 
general  relation,  that  of  protecting  our  flank,  as 
the  enemy  seemed  to  be  reinforcing  for  another 
attack.  But  the  dreadful  loss  continued.  I 
saw  a  shell  strike  in  a  little  picket  pit  contain 
ing  three  officers,  and  a  foot,  with  boot  and  all, 
flew  over  my  head.  I  recognized  then  with  pain 
a  mangled  lieutenant  of  the  77th  New  York  to 


246          FOLLOWING   THE   GREEK  CROSS. 

whom  I  was  obliged  a  few  days  before  to  refuse 
a  leave  of  absence. 

As  I  was  standing  between  the  77th  and  the 
122d  New  York,  a  Vermont  captain  came  np 
with  his  company,  having  become  separated  from 
his  brigade,  and  asked  for  orders.  At  this  mo 
ment  I  felt  a  bullet  graze  my  arm  through  my 
overcoat,  and  saw  the  smoke  of  a  musket  from 
the  roof  of  a  large  and  comfortable-looking 
house  between  the  lines.  I  ordered  the  captain 
to  take  his  company  and  drive  the  rebels  out, 
which  he  did  in  almost  the  time  it  takes  to  tell 
it,  and  returned  to  our  line.  But  in  a  few  min 
utes  back  the  enemy  came  in  greater  numbers, 
and  a  dozen  muskets  flashed  from  the  windows, 
now  glistening  in  the  setting  sun.  Again  I  sent 
the  Vermont  captain  with  orders  to  take  and 
burn  the  house,  which  were  promptly  obeyed. 
All  the  while  the  cannoneers  were  working  the 
thirty  rebel  cannon  desperately.  Still  there  was 
no  movement  of  troops  to  cover  our  exposed 
right,  and  still  all  the  signs  pointed  to  an  im 
mediate  attack  from  that  direction.  The  whole 
situation  was  anxious  in  the  extreme,  when  sud 
denly  the  1st  Maine  rose  to  their  feet  and  began 
to  cheer.  I  could  not  see  what  for,  so  mounted 
and  got  to  them  at  once,  and  to  my  delight  and 
theirs  the  1st  brigade  flag  was  pushing  through 
the  brush  off  to  our  right. 


OUR    VANDALISM.  247 

When  this  brigade  got  near  enough  for  me  to 
see  Warner's  happy  face,  delighted  that  his 
chance  had  come  at  last,  I  ordered  the  122d 
New  York  and  the  1st  Maine  forward  at  the 
double  the  moment  that  he  was  in  line  with  us, 
and  in  a  dashing  charge  we  cleared  the  ravines 
for  nearly  half  a  mile,  taking  several  hundred 
prisoners.  But  the  darkness  was  falling,  so  we 
returned  on  the  original  rebel  picket  line  and 
dug  rifle  pits,  and  my  last  waking  recollection 
of  that  evening  is  a  canteen  of  coffee  my  colored 
boy  Bob  brought  after  the  cannon  were  silent 
and  the  glow-worm,  like  lanterns  of  those  gather 
ing  in  the  fallen,  were  twinkling  on  the  field. 
Why  our  batteries  did  not  reply  to  the  terrible 
fire  from  the  Confederate  forts  is  unknown  to 
me.  Perhaps  they  did,  and,  intensely  occupied, 
I  failed  to  notice  it.  So  I  had  fought  my  brigade 
for  the  first  time,  and  anxiety  whether  I  had 
done  the  right  thing  kept  off  sleep  that  night. 

In  the  morning  a  flag  of  truce  brought  a  com 
munication  from  General  Cadmus  Wilcox  com 
manding  the  enemy,  bitterly  complaining  of 
our  vandalism  in  burning  that  house,  which 
it  seemed  belonged  to  some  one  high  in  rebel 
circles.  General  Wright  sent  for  me  and  or 
dered  me  to  make  a  full  investigation,  but  when 
I  told  him  it  was  burned  by  my  order  and  why, 
he  had  nothing  to  say,  and  what  answer  was 


248  FOLLOWING   THE   GREEK   CROSS. 

made  to  General  Wilcox  I  never  heard.  While 
every  one  in  the  brigade  was  in  this  fight  all 
I  could  ask,  one  of  the  most  gallant  pictures 
I  recall  is  Captain  Selkirk,  inspector-general,  on 
his  gray  horse,  almost  up  to  the  opposite  forts  to 
bring  back  some  of  our  men  who  either  did  not 
hear  or  would  not  mind  the  warning  bugle. 

When  we  got  the  Northern  papers  and  looked 
eagerly  for  accounts  of  what  we  thought  a  pretty 
little  fight,  we  saw :  "  There  was  heavy  skir 
mishing  on  the  lines  of  the  6th  corps  yesterday," 
and  yet  the  losses  of  the  brigade  were  more  than 
those  of  the  British  army  at  Tel-el-kebir. 


CHAPTER  XLI. 

"  If  Southern  steel  be  sharp  and  keen 
Is  not  ours  strong  and  true  ? 
There  may  be  danger  in  the  deed 
But  there  is  honor  too." 

AYTOHN. 

SHERIDAN  had  gone  out  to  the  left  with  the 
5th  corps,  and  orders  came  to  us  to  prepare  to 
make  an  assault  on  the  works  opposite,  on  April 
2d  before  daybreak.  General  Wright  came  to 
my  line  to  select  a  place  to  form  the  corps,  and 
finally  hit  upon  the  left  of  Fort  Fisher,  where 
there  was  some  rising  ground  behind  our  picket 
pits,  and  he  chose  a  direction  at  a  right  angle  to 
our  attack  of  a  week  before.  There  was  a  right 
angle  in  the  rebel  line,  as  in  ours,  and  there  was 
no  water  in  front  of  their  forts  on  this  side. 
The  ground  over  which  we  were  to  charge  had 
been  burned  over,  and  five  formidable  lines  of 
abattis  must  be  passed  before  reaching  the  forti 
fications.  General  Wright  told  me  we  would 
attack  in  a  wedge-like  formation,  and  that  my 
brigade  should  be  the  point  of  the  wedge. 
Some  of  our  pickets  that  afternoon  called  my 
attention  to  an  opening  in  the  abattis  through 
which  our  friends  in  butternut  were  accustomed 


250          FOLLOWING   THE   GREEK  CROSS. 

to  come  out  to  cut  wood  and  go  on  picket,  and 
said  they  had  noticed  there  was  always  a  large 
camp-fire  beyond  the  forts,  that  was  in  line  with 
this  opening,  and  that  i£  we  should  direct 
ourselves  on  that  fire  we  could  get  through  the 
abattis  easily.  This  is  an  illustration  of  the 
cleverness  of  the  American  private  soldier.  We 
would  often  hear  from  them  criticisms  of  mili 
tary  movements  and  bright  suggestions  as  they 
talked  about  their  fires  that  would  do  credit  to 
a  trained  staff.  In  the  present  instance  it  is 
probable  that  our  assault  was  saved  from  disaster 
by  this  simple  bit  of  information.  As  all  details 
of  the  part  the  brigade  was  to  take  in  the  mo 
mentous  battle  of  the  morrow  were  left  to  me,  I 
summoned  the  six  regimental  commanders  and 
we  went  up  a  signal  tower  behind  our  camps, 
and  with  the  heads  of  my  discourse  on  the  back 
of  an  envelope  I  have  still  preserved,  and  a  copy 
of  which  is  below,  I  delivered  a  lecture  on  what 
was  to  be  done,  and  directed  them  to  repeat  the 
same  to  their  officers,  1st  and  color  sergeants. 

1.  Fall  in  at  midnight. 

2.  Leave  knapsacks  and  canteens  in  camp. 

3.  Load  without  capping. 

4.  File  out  to  left  of  Fort  Welch  along  ra 
vine,  and  form  as  follows :  — 

43d  N.  Y.,  Milliken;  77th  N.  Y.,  Caw;  350 
men. 


IN  PREPARATION,  251 

1st  Maine  Vet.,  Fletcher,  350  men. 

49th  N.  Y.,  Holt ;  122d  N.  Y.,  Clapp ;  400  men. 

61st  Penn.,  Crosby,  500  men. 

5.  Forty  sharpened  axes  in  front  rank. 

6.  Signal  to  start,  —  a  gun  from  Fort  Fisher, 
one  half  hour  before  daybreak. 

7.  Guide    on    rebel    camp-fire,    over    burnt 
ground  and  through  openings  in  abattis. 

8.  When  inside,  keep  right  on  and  cut  South- 
side  E.  R. 

There  was  much  to  do  that  evening  getting 
ready  for  what  we  then  believed  to  be  the  final 
campaign.  Our  camps  were  to  be  broken  up,  all 
impediments  sent  to  the  rear,  and  everything 
needed  for  hard  work  got  in  order.  A  heavy 
mist  made  the  moonless  nigfht  more  dark  and 

O 

gloomy,  and  the  raw  air  of  midnight  saw  us 
quietly  moving  to  our  allotted  places.  The  rest 
of  the  corps  was  to  our  right  and  left  .rear  in 
echelon  of  brigades  formed  in  columns  of  regi 
ments.  The  3d  division  to  our  left  was  partly 
covered  by  a  ravine.  My  first  thought  after 
getting  the  brigade  in  position  was  to  look  for 
the  camp-fire  that  was  to  be  our  bright  beacon, 
and  there  it  was  shining  peacefully  through  the 
mist. 

Our  pickets  had  been  strictly  cautioned  not 
to  fire,  but  as  we  lay  thickly  packed  on  the 
rising  ground  behind  them,  some  idiot  fired  his 


252          FOLLOWING   THE   GREEK   CROSS. 

piece.  The  rebels  promptly  responded,  and  al 
most  every  shot  they  fired  took  effect  in  our  col 
umn,  as  could  be  told  by  the  thuds  and  stifled 
outcries.  Captain  Ac[ams  of  Rhode  Island  then 
reported  to  me  with  twenty  men  of  his  battery 
carrying  rammers  and  sponges,  he  having  volun 
teered  to  go  in  with  us  to  turn  the  enemy's  guns 
on  them  as  soon  as  taken.  Then  suddenly  from 
all  our  forts  to  the  rear  burst  the  hail  of  shotted 
cannon.  More  than  a  hundred  guns  belched 
forth,  and  we  learned  that  it  was  in  honor  of  a 
great  victory  at  Five  Forks. 

But  in  their  clamor  how  was  I  to  tell  the  sig 
nal  gun  for  our  advance  ?  I  started  back  to  find 
out,  and  met  General  Getty,  our  division  com 
mander,  who  told  me  it  was  time  to  go  in.  I 
went  over  to  notify  General  L.  A.  Grant,  com 
manding  the  Vermont  brigade  next  on  our  left, 
and  lost  a  little  time  finding  his  successor,  as  I 
was  told  that  Grant  had  just  been  carried  off 
wounded  by  the  wretched  picket  fire.  Then 
standing  on  the  rifle  pits  in  front  of  the  brigade 
I  gave  to  each  line  of  the  column  in  as  low  a 
tone  as  possible  the  orders,  "  Attention !  For 
ward  !  Charge  !  "  and  when  conscious  that  the 
last  line  of  black  forms  in  the  blacker  darkness 
were  over  the  pits,  I  followed  as  fast  as  possible, 
greatly  regretting  I  had  been  so  foolish  as  to 
have  left  my  horse.  I  remember  ordering  a  lot 


THE  LINES  PIERCED.  253 

of  rebels  to  the  rear  as  we  crossed  their  picket 
pits,  for  then  the  black  darkness  was  becoming 
gray  in  the  coming  dawn,  and  the  shot  and  shell 
from  the  enemy's  forts  were  like  so  many  rockets 
fired  horizontally,  and  they  were  mostly  a  few 
feet  over  our  heads.  By  their  light,  the  trend 
of  the  attack  seemed  to  be  sweeping  off  to  the 
right  instead  of  going  straight  forward,  and  for  a 
time  I  was  swept  that  way,  too,  till  I  met  Lieu 
tenant  Webber  of  the  1st  Maine,  who  showed  me 
our  advance  well  up  to  the  abattis.  When  we 
caught  up  with  them  they  were  resting  a  mo 
ment  in  the  ditch,  but  they  were  soon  over  the 
works  like  so  many  cats,  giving  and  receiving 
bayonet  thrusts,  and  the  cannon  were  hardly  si 
lent  before  they  were  fired  the  other  way  by 
Adams  and  his  men. 

It  was  now  the  half  light  of  early  morning, 
and  from  my  horse,  just  brought  up,  I  could  see 
many  of  the  brigade,  each  man  for  himself, 
pushing  for  the  railroad ;  others  dressed  in  Con 
federate  officers'  jackets  were  looting  the  camps  ; 
others  were  collecting  droves  of  prisoners ;  oth 
ers  were  on  the  mules  of  a  captured  train,  and 
all  about  as  happy  a  lot  as  could  be  imagined. 
As  soon  as  word  came  that  the  track  was  torn 
up,  the  recall  was  sounded,  and,  forming  with  the 
rest  of  the  division,  we  swept  off  to  the  left  after 
the  bulk  of  the  enemy  who  had  gone  that  way. 


254          FOLLOWING   THE   GREEK   CROSS. 

Piercing  through  the  woods  to  a  large  clearing, 
we  saw  at  its  farther  corner  a  few  mounted  men. 
A  few  shots  —  one  of  them  fell,  and  was  carried 
off  by  his  companions.  I  have  always  believed 
that  there  fell  General  A.  P.  Hill,  who  was  Gen 
eral  Lee's  right  arm.  When  we  reached  Hatch 
ers  Run,  Captain  Merrill,  of  the  1st  Maine,  with 
14  men,  crossed  it  on  fallen  trees  and  captured 
and  brought  back  79  men,  the  sharpshooters  of 
Heth's  division.  This  shows  how  a  night  attack 
had  demoralized  our  gallant  foe.  But  the  expe 
rience  of  this  one  would  seem  on  the  whole  to 
condemn  night  attacks,  for  though  it  was  success 
ful  and  our  loss  was  not  serious,  I  think  a  very 
large  proportion  of  those  taking  part  in  it  got 
mixed  up  in  the  darkness  and  went  the  wrong 
way,  and  only  the  fact  of  our  getting  through 
the  abattis  so  easily,  gave  us  the  victory.  Of  my 
six  regimental  commanders,  Crosby  and  Holt 
were  killed,  Caw  and  Orr  wounded ;  Caw  by  a 
bayonet.  The  61st  Pennsylvania  had  about  500 
men  that  day :  200  of  them  old  men,  and  300 
drafted  men,  substitutes,  and  the  like.  As  we 
started  the  charge,  the  300  of  the  latter  disap 
peared  and  we  never  heard  of  them  afterwards, 
but  the  200  old  men  took  two  of  the  five  colors 
captured  by  the  brigade.  The  200,  in  my  opin 
ion,  should  all  have  large  pensions,  and  the  300 
should  all  have  been  shot  or  hung.  It  would  be 


WHO  DESERVED  PENSIONS?  255 

interesting  to  know  how  many  of  the  latter  lot  in 
after  days  turned  up  to  be  pensioned  by  a  grate 
ful  government,  and  still  we  wonder  that  the  pen 
sion  roll  is  not  a  roll  of  honor. 


CHAPTER  XLII. 

"  For  the  city  is  ours  '  Mac  '  sought  from  the  start, 
An'  our  boys  thro'  its  streets  '  Hail,  Columbia '  are  yellin'  ; 
And  there  's  prayer  in  the  air,  an'  there  's  pride  in  the  heart, 
And  our  flag-  has  a  fame  that  no  tongue  can  be  tellin'.  " 

HALPINE. 

AFTER  reaching  Hatcher's  Run  on  the  left, 
orders  came  to  retrace  our  steps,  and  on  getting 
back  to  the  forts  and  camps  we  had  taken,  a 
brief  halt  was  allowed  for  coffee.  Here  Gen 
eral  Grant  with  a  long  cavalcade  passed  us  and 
was  cheered,  and  we  saw  the  fine  lines  of  battle 
of  Orel's  colored  troops  march  over  the  breast 
works  we  had  won.  Then  the  division  was 
formed  in  line  facing  to  the  right  toward  Pe 
tersburg,  the  3d  brigade  on  the  left,  and  I  was 
directed  to  put  the  left  regiment,  the  1st  Maine 
veterans,  in  echelon  of  companies  to  protect  that 
flank.  There  was  a  good  deal  of  firing  off  to 
the  right  where  the  9th  corps  had  not  yet  taken 
some  forts,  and  to  the  left  and  front  the  enemy 
began  to  show  themselves.  As  we  advanced  in 
a  handsome  line  of  battle  over  rolling  and  open 
country,  our  batteries  galloped  to  the  front  and 
opened  fire  in  a  most  spirited  manner.  But 
soon  a  rebel  battery  opened  on  our  left  almost 


AMIDST  SHOT  AND  SHELL.       257 

enfilading  the  line,  and  several  times,  as  it  was 
forced  to  change  position  by  the  fire  of  the  1st 
Maine,  we  noticed  each  time  a  fine-looking  old 
officer,  on  a  gray  horse,  who  seemed  to  be  direct 
ing  its  movements. 

At  length  the  guns  went  into  battery  again 
on  a  hill  near  a  large  house,  and  their  audible 
presence  became  more  annoying  than  ever.  By 
common  consent  the  three  brigades  attempted 
to  charge  the  hill,  but  the  canister  lire  was  so 
hot  and  the  division  now  so  small  and  wearied, 
the  first  attack  was  a  failure.  While  our 
men  were  getting  in  shape  to  charge  again,  I 
sent  Lieutenant  Nichols  with  fifty  men  of  the 
1st  Maine  off  to  the  left  and  around  the  hill 
with  orders  to  shoot  the  battery  horses,  as  we 
knew  we  could  get  on  their  flank,  and  they  were 
probably  standing  hitched  to  the  caissons  and 
would  be  a  fine  mark  from  that  side.  As  soon 
as  he  had  disappeared  in  a  piece  of  woods,  on 
we  started  again.  This  time  through  a  swamp 
where  many  sank  to  the  waist,  and  where  shot 
was  splashing  the  mud  and  water  in  every  di 
rection. 

Here  I  saw  two  color  sergeants  of  the  1st 
Maine  fall,  but  the  colors  were  picked  up 
promptly,  and  every  one  struggled  over  as  best 
he  could,  but  the  wounded,  as  well  as  the  dead, 
had  to  stav  there  for  a  time.  The  first  five  hun- 


258          FOLLOWING  THE   GREEK  CROSS. 

dred  men  across  made  a  run  for  the  battery,  and 
as  we  went  up  the  hill  amid  the  roar  of  guns 
and  whir  of  canister,  amid  Yankee  cheers  and 
rebel  yells,  I  detected  the  crack  of  Nichols's 
rifles  and  knew  the  guns  could  not  be  got 
away.  The  din  was  terrible !  Brass  Napoleons 
were  never  better  served,  but  they  were  doomed. 
I  saw  Sergeant  Highill  of  my  brigade,  General 
Warner's  orderly,  and  two  Vermont  colors  go 
between  the  guns  at  the  same  time,  so  neither 
brigade  could  claim  the  sole  honor.  Riding 
through  the  guns  I  could  not  see  the  road  be 
yond  where  the  enemy  were  retreating,  for  dust, 
and  most  of  the  battery  horses  lay  in  their 
tracks. 

I  asked  a  mortally  wounded  artillery  officer 
who  was  propped  up  against  a  limber  what 
battery  it  was.  "  Captain  Williams  of  Pogue's 
North  Carolina  battalion, "  said  he.  "  And 
who  was  the  officer  on  the  gray  horse,"  I  con 
tinued.  "  General  Robert  E.  Lee,  sir,  and  he 
was  the  last  man  to  leave  these  guns,"  replied 
he,  almost  exhausted  by  the  effort.  What  a 
prize  we  had  missed!  this  gallant  old  man, 
struggling  like  a  Titan  against  defeat.  He 
had  ordered  his  battery  commander  to  die  there, 
and  had  done  all  one  brave  man  could  do  to 
save  his  fortunes  from  the  wreck.  They  told  us 
the  house  had  been  his  headquarters  during  the 


THE  SPIRES   OF  PETERSBURG.  259 

siege  of  Petersburg.  In  a  Confederate  "  Life  of 
General  Lee  "  I  have  seen  this  incident  men 
tioned,  but  the  account  says  he  saved  the  bat 
tery. 

As  soon  as  our  men  had  had  a  brief  moment 
to  take  breath,  we  pushed  on.  The  Appomattox 
came  in  sight,  and  more  fire  from  across  it.  I 
sent  Captain  Whittlesey  of  the  1st  Maine  over 
on  a  hastily  improvised  raft,  and  his  men  soon 
scattered  the  discouraged  foe.  But  off  in  the 
distance  are  the  spires  and  inner  works  of 
Petersburg,  and  into  them  are  double-quicking 
the  gallant  corps  of  Longstreet,  called  from  the 
north  side  of  the  James  too  late  to  save  the  day. 
The  sun  is  fast  setting ;  Longstreet's  force  is 
vastly  superior  to  our  little  division;  we  are 
halted  while  the  Vermont  skirmishers  engage 
the  new-comers,  and  we  make  the  best  line  pos 
sible  under  the  circumstances.  General  Pen- 
rose  with  the  Jersey  brigade  comes  up  to  relieve 
mine,  and  while  I  am  telling  him  about  what  is 
in  front  of  us,  the  last  two  shots  are  fired  as  the 
light  is  beginning  to  be  dim.  One  kills  Lieuten 
ant  Messer  of  Maine  by  my  side,  and  the  other 
knocks  Penrose  out  of  his  saddle,  though  his 
belt  plate  saved  him  all  but  shock  and  pain. 

Then  we  sink  to  the  ground  as  we  are ;  no 
supper,  no  blankets ;  nineteen  hours  of  continu 
ous  marching  and  fighting  has  taken  the  energy 


260          FOLLOWING   THE   GREEK  CROSS. 

well  out  of  everybody.  We  were  too  tired  to 
congratulate  ourselves  on  the  victory,  and  did 
not  care  if  Petersburg  was  in  sight  and  near, 
or  grudge  it  to  any  one  who  would  make  the 
capture.  The  next  morning  it  surrendered  to 
our  pickets,  and  Longstreet's  glorious  veterans 
were  far  off  in  the  race  to  escape. 


CHAPTER  XLIII. 

"  So  sleeps  the  pride  of  former  days, 

So  glory's  thrill  is  o'er, 
And  hearts  that  once  beat  high  for  praise 
Now  feel  that  pulse  no  more." 

MOORE. 

WE  were  not  destined  to  see  Petersburg,  be 
fore  whose  outlying  fortifications  we  had  stayed 
so  many  weary  months.  I  am  not  sure  that  it 
was  worth  seeing  from  any  point  of  view,  but 
I  confess  to  a  curiosity  about  the  place,  which 
has  not  been  gratified. 

As  the  sun  was  beginning  to  put  himself  in 
evidence,  the  drum  beats  called  us  from  our 
hard  couches,  and  while  the  orders  from  divi 
sion  headquarters  were  being  sent  out,  coffee 
was  served  that  seemed  like  nectar,  though  I 
can  hardly  compare  the  hard-tack  to  ambrosia. 
The  orders  meant  a  swift  and  sharp  pursuit, 
and  they  were  obeyed.  When  we  halted  that 
night  after  over  twenty  miles'  progress,  up  came 
our  knapsacks  in  wagons  jolting  over  stumps, 
and  in  the  round  hole  of  the  canvas  at  the  end 
of  one  was  the  warm-haired  silhouette  of  my  old 
college  friend,  —  so  gifted,  so  loved,  and  soon  so 
sadly  lost.  Peace  be  to  your  memory,  Moses 


262          FOLLOWING    THE    GREEK   CROSS. 

Owen  !  You  did  all  you  could  to  suppress  the 
Rebellion  in  your  laughing  way.  You  cheered 
the  warriors  with  quip  and  jest,  and  your  songs 
were  those  of  the  bards  of  old. 

On  the  morrow  still  another  long  tramp, 
through  leafy  woods  and  over  rolling  plains. 
Faint  booming  of  cannon  far  away  hurried  our 
footsteps,  and  the  desire  to  end  the  business 
with  speed  was  in  the  hearts  of  each  and  all. 
And  still  pity  and  respect  for  the  foe  was  slowly 
growing,  as  respect  and  camaraderie  have  been 
growing  with  us  since  many  years  toward  our 
brave  fellow  countrymen  who  wore  the  gray. 

The  next  day  we  were  in  line  of  battle,  di 
rected  through  a  thick  forest,  toward  Amelia 
Court  House,  as  Lee  was  supposed  to  be  there ; 
but  he  was  elsewhere,  and  the  day  following,  in 
the  forenoon  as  we  were  coughing  in  the  dust, 
an  order  came  back  to  double-quick,  and  the 
boom  and  rattling  volley  ahead  gave  token  that 
we  had  caught  up  at  last.  On  we  went  at  the 
trot  for  half  an  hour,  the  toughest  and  bravest 
only  being  able  to  keep  in  the  column. 

My  small  brigade  emerged  from  the  woods  to 
see  a  striking  panorama  unfold.  On  the  left, 
Sheridan  with  his  brilliant  staff  was  fretting 
and  fuming  and  raging  that  he  could  not  do  all 
himself,  but  yet  happy  that  he  had  his  favorite 
6th  corps  with  him  at  last ;  in  front  our  3d 


GENERAL   PHILIP    H.  SHERIDAN 


THE    SURRENDER  AT  LAST.  263 

division  was  charging  over  Sailor's  Creek  in  fine 
array,  upon  a  line  of  10,000  rebels  that  might 
have  seemed  invincible,  had  we  not  seen  beyond 
them  the  guidons  of  our  cavalry  as  thick  as  fly 
ing  leaves  in  autumn  winds. 

The  smoke  of  burning  trains  made  an  horizon 
for  the  picture.  I  was  proud  to  get  the  brigade 
into  line  under  Sheridan's  own  eye,  and  in  we 
plunged  to  take  our  part,  but  before  we  crossed 
the  creek,  which  was  choked  with  bodies  and 
black  with  blood,  the  enemy,  attacked  from  all 
directions,  disintegrated,  and  many  thousands 
threw  down  their  arms.  Lieutenant-General 
Ewell  had  yielded  his  sword. 

Familiar  and  historic  names  by  scores  surren 
dered,  and  still  some  1,000  of  the  Marine  Bri 
gade,  formerly  the  Richmond  Garrison,  fought 
on.  Beleaguered  on  all  sides,  it  looked  as  if  the 
fate  of  Cambronne  and  the  old  guard  at  Wa 
terloo  was  theirs,  but  at  last  the  arms  were  taken 
from  their  hands,  as  Ouster's  splendid  cavalry 
were  swooping  down,  following  their  gallant 
commander,  his  yellow  locks  floating  in  the 
wind.  Here  was  near  a  third  of  Lee's  army 
wiped  out  in  one  fell  blow,  and  on  we  pushed 
in  the  forests  for  miles  farther,  though  darkness 
did  not  come,  for  the  rebel  trains  were  burning. 

Another  day,  and  again  the  merciless  tramp, 
with  scarce  a  halt.  Toward  noon  a  sudden  still- 


264         FOLLOWING   THE   GREEK   CROSS. 

ness  came.  The  usual  thunder  around  the  hori 
zon  became  strangely  silent.  It  seemed  as  if 
we  were  marching  in  a  vacuum.  I  dashed 
ahead  to  see  what  it  meant,  and  within  a  mile 
came  upon  our  revered  division  commander, 
General  Getty,  sitting  under  a  tree,  his  face  in 
his  hands.  "What  is  it,  general?"  "Lee  has 
surrendered, "  was  the  reply.  I  joined  him  on 
the  ground,  and  bitter  tears  fell  for  a  career  un 
timely  nipped.  Wicked,  ill-timed,  and  selfish  as 
it  may  have  been,  grief,  that  the  glorious  career 
of  army  life  was  cut  short,  was  filling  my  boyish 
heart.  Not  enough  developed  to  appreciate 
fully  what  this  all  meant  to  civilization,  to  free 
dom,  and  to  countless  generations  yet  to  come, 
my  own  mistaken  emotions  must  have  vent  for  a 
moment.  It  was  only  a  moment,  however.  I 
must  tell  the  boys,  and  as  I  came  back  down 
the  road  at  the  pace  only  a  Virginia  running 
stallion  can  display,  two  thousand  bright  and 
eager  faces  were  drawing  near  to  meet  me. 
"  The  war  is  over  !  Lee  has  surrendered !  "  I 
cry  out,  and  am  carried  back  and  forth  on  stal 
wart  shoulders.  Discipline  is  at  an  end,  and  we 
are  only  patriotic  American  citizens  for  the  rest 
of  the  day.  The  batteries  fire  off  all  of  their 
cartridges  blank,  and  the  most  crazy  joy  seizes 
all  alike. 

A  great   cavalcade    is    seen  approaching  us. ' 


A   SATURNALIA   OF  JOY.  265 

It  is  Meade  followed  by  the  generals  and  staffs 
of  the  army,  a  thousand  strong.  The  men,  20 
deep,  line  each  side  of  his  pathway  and  throw 
their  caps  and  knapsacks  under  the  feet  of  the 
horses.  It  is  a  saturnalia  of  joy,  and  not  far 
away,  happily  unconscious  of  our  ecstasies,  the 
vanquished  lion  of  the  Confederacy  and  the 
remnant  of  his  host  are  feeling 

"  All  the  griefs  that  brave  men  feel, 

When  conquered,  e'en  by  foeman  worthy  of  their  steel.  " 

To  our  momentary  disgust  and  to  Grant's 
honor,  we  were,  the  next  day,  refused  a  sight 
of  the  Southern  army.  How  mad  we  were,  and 
how  unjustly !  We  did  not  want  to  exult  over 
them,  but  we  were  curious.  The  bummers,  the 
sutlers,  and  all  that  would  run  the  guard  got 
over,  but  we  were  forbidden  and  would  not 
try  it.  And  they  were  spared  what  might  have 
seemed  to  them  a  humiliation. 

Only  one  Confederate  officer  did  I  see. 
Lieutenant-General  Gordon  came  riding  down 
the  road  by  us  like  a  knight  of  old.  No  better 
Southern  soldier  lived  then  or  now.  We  can 
pardon  the  harm  he  did  us,  for  his  contribution 
to  the  American  record  for  bravery  and  skill  in 
arms. 


CHAPTER  XLIV. 

"  Farewell  the  plumed  troops,  and  the  big1  wars, 
That  make  ambition  virtue  !  Oh,  farewell !  " 

SHAKESPEARE. 

WE  marched  back  to  Burkesville  junction, 
and  late  at  night  received  the  terrible  news  of 
Mr.  Lincoln's  assassination.  Profound  grief 
and  indignation  seized  the  army.  Guards  were 
doubled.  No  one  knew  what  would  come  next ; 
but  the  sober  Yankee  sense  forbore  reprisals 
and  waited.  It  is  better  to  lag  in  vengeance. 
One  of  the  saddest  sights  I  saw  afterward  was 
Mrs.  Surratt  in  irons  before  her  judges,  and  the 
court  was  composed  of  officers  and  gentlemen. 
The  apotheosis  of  Lincoln  was  grand,  but  the 
country  suffered  under  its  great  loss. 

We  were  ordered  to  Sheridan,  and  the  whole 
outfit  was  sent  to  finish  Johnson  in  North  Caro 
lina.  The  marches  were  forced.  My  friends 
at  headquarters  started  my  little  brigade  out  at 
daybreak  to  take  Danville.  We  got  there  by 
noon.  I  sent  a  party  over  the  Dan  River  by 
fords  to  the  right,  and  while  the  mayor  was  sur 
rendering  at  the  bridge,  had  the  place  sur 
rounded,  and  five  thousand  prisoners  with  some 
millions  of  property  secured. 


ARMY  JOURNALISM.  267 

Then  I  was  made  military  governor  of  the 
place  and  the  three  adjacent  counties,  and  had 
the  pleasure  of  being  a  satrap  for  a  couple  of 
months.  My  power  was  absolute;  executive, 
legislative,  and  judicial,  all  were  combined. 

We  began  to  parole  our  prisoners,  and  I  re 
member  taking  account  of  45  of  them  and  43 
made  their  -f-  mark.  On  entering  the  place,  I 
saw  the  sign  "  Danville  Register, "  and  sent 
Moses  Owen  with  orders  to  get  out  a  paper. 
Jeff  Davis's  last  proclamation  was  in  type  in  the 
office  when  he  got  there.  In  a  few  hours,  as 
the  balance  of  the  corps  marched  through,  the 
newsboys  were  crying  "  The  Daily  Sixth  Corps,  " 
and  selling  all  that  could  be  printed  at  25  cents 
apiece.  Moses  took  the  owner  of  the  paper 
into  partnership,  who  never  made  so  much 
money  in  his  life.  When  Moses  did  not  feel 
just  right  in  the  morning,  he  would  publish  the 
same  paper  as  the  day  before,  and  it  sold  quite 
as  well.  His  original  poetry  and  imaginary  dis 
patches  from  the  North,  as  well  as  bulletins  from 
the  corps  and  personal  allusions,  make  my  files 
of  the  "  Sixth  Corps  "  unique  in  journalism. 

The  town  was  filled  with  Confederate  officers, 
and  we  had  no  proper  chance  till  I  ordered  all 
of  them  wearing  uniform  to  report  to  the  pro 
vost-marshal.  Their  uniforms  were  seen  no 
more,  and  O  fickle  woman  !  the  blue  and  brass 


268          FOLLOWING    THE   GREEK   CROSS. 

buttons  had  then  their  legitimate  field.  I  think 
no  citizen  of  Danville  regretted  our  stay  there, 
but  the  time  came  for  us  to  be  ordered  North. 
We  had  heard  of  the  Grand  Review  in  Wash 
ington,  and  longed  to  be  in  it. 

On  a  train  that  moved  about  ten  miles  an  hour 
we  started  North.  Many  urged  me  to  burn  the 
old  rebel  prisons  as  we  went.  I  should  have 
winked  at  it,  but  the  wind  was  toward  the  town, 
which  forbade,  as  well  as  the  attitude  of  the 
Danville  people  during  our  stay.  This  was,  as 
soon  as  they  understood  us,  all  that  could  be 
asked. 

No  incident,  beyond  running  into  a  cow  or 
two,  occurred  till  we  reached  Richmond,  when 
in  as  good  form  as  we  knew  we  passed  the 
Spotswood  Hotel,  and  saw  war's  ruin  everywhere. 
It  had  taken  four  years  to  get  there,  and  it  was 
not  much  of  a  place  after  all.  The  peaceful 
march  to  Washington  over  familiar  war-worn 
ground  seemed  very  queer.  There  was  no  firing 
or  the  picket  line  at  night.  We  were  all  becom 
ing  impressed  with  the  problem  of  what  we  were 
going  to  do  when  we  got  home.  The  fellows 
that  had  stayed  at  home  had  all  got  a  start,  and 
we  regarded  our  four  years  wasted  for  business 
purposes.  That  was  a  mistake,  however,  for  the 
discipline  and  subordination  of  the  army  had 
done  us  no  harm,  and  if  we  did  not  do  so  well 


HOME  AT  LAST.  269 

as  if  we  had  had  a  longer  apprenticeship,  we 
were  docile  and  ready  to  work.  The  wonder  of 
the  war  was  the  sudden  absorption  of  both 
armies  into  the  body  politic  again  with  scarcely 
a  ripple  upon  its  surface. 

When  we  got  to  Washington  we  had  our  own 
review.  It  was  phenomenally  hot,  even  for 
Washington.  Behind  the  banners  of  the  Greek 
Cross  some  12,000  hardy  soldiers  marched  up 
Pennsylvania  Avenue,  defiled  before  the  Presi 
dent,  and  again  sought  the  camps  to  speedily  leave 
them  for  their  Northern  homes.  Many  of  us 
were  selected  to  form  a  corps  for  duty  in  the 
South  and  against  Maximilian,  but  the  necessity 
for  it  failed  as  time  went  on. 

My  last  quasi-military  service  was  serving  as 
marshal  at  the  4th  of  July  celebration  at  home, 
with  orderlies,  flags,  and  all.  Then  came  citizen 
ship,  and  the  record  for  some  thirty  years  past 
has  told  whether  we  were  unfitted  for  it  by  the 
four  years  of  campaigning. 

Should  the  flag  again  be  threatened  by  civil 
enemy  or  foreign  foe,  the  survivors  of  the  Great 
War  are  not  yet  too  old  to  be  useful  and  will  be 
found,  shoulder  to  shoulder  with  their  old  oppo 
nents,  in  defense  of  our  common  country,  and 
Liberty,  the  "  Light  of  the  world.  " 


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